In the late summer of 1981, Janelle Brooks started throwing shows in the ba… Read Full Bio ↴In the late summer of 1981, Janelle Brooks started throwing shows in the basement of her parents' house in Potomac, Maryland. Usually these parties would feature five or six bands, who were usually happy to share their gear with each other. Most of their songs were only a minute long, and therefore the sets tended to be really brief. There was a pole in the middle of the carpeted rec-room that everyone danced around, and between bands people hung out all over the house and in the yards. Nobody knew where Janelle's parents were during these throwdowns, but apparently they were ok with it. In September, one of these shows featured the end of three bands: Assault and Battery, Minor Threat, and Red C. Things moved quickly in the punk scene at that point and bands would come and go, so it wasn't a surprise that a new band formed by Pete from Red C along with Mike, Rob and Steve of Assault and Battery played Janelle's next party just three weeks later. Mike's bass drum head had an upside down peace-sign painted on it and the name of the band was Artificial Peace. They were solid and fast and they quickly managed to build one of the largest followings of all of the early bands. They were one of the first DC area bands to play out of town, always making it a point to announce that they were from Bethesda, a city just across the DC line in Maryland. Ian MacKaye recorded a 19-song demo with them at Inner Ear, and three of those songs appear on the 'Flex Your Head' Sampler. They also released a split 7" with The Exiled on the Fountain of Youth label which was released in 1982.

Artificial Peace 1981-1982
Steve Polcari - vocals
Peter Murray - Guitar
Mike Manos - drums
Rob Moss - bass

Artificial Peace
Artificial Peace Lyrics

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Artificial peace Everyday when you buy the newspaper
Everyday when you light up the t.v.
Everyday when you listen to the radio

You can read
You can see
You can hear

Just one thing

Violence

Artificial peace

Overall Meaning

The song "Artificial Peace" by the band Artificial Peace is a social commentary on contemporary society's passive acceptance of violence. The lyrics describe how people are bombarded with news and entertainment that features violence in various forms, yet they continue to consume it without questioning its impact on their lives. The phrase "artificial peace" refers to the illusion of calm and safety that is maintained even in the face of constant violence.

The repetition of the phrase "Everyday when" underscores the routine nature of this cycle. The media we consume shapes our perception of the world, and the ubiquity of violence in the media is a reflection of the larger societal issues that contribute to it. The chorus of the song simply declares "Just one thing / Violence," emphasizing that despite the many distractions and diversions of daily life, violence remains a constant.

The lyrics of the song are a provocative call to action to consider the role we play in perpetuating violence. It is also a reminder that violence is not simply an external threat, but is often rooted in the systems and structures of society.

Line by Line Meaning

Everyday when you buy the newspaper
Every day, when you purchase the newspaper, you are confronted with news stories that often depict violence, conflict, and tragedy - the very things that disrupt peace in society.

Everyday when you light up the t.v.
Every day, when you turn on the television, you are exposed to images of violence, turmoil, and unrest - things that can easily unsettle, disturb, and compromise peace.

Everyday when you listen to the radio
Every day, when you tune in to listen to the radio, you are bound to come across news reports, updates, and discussions on the various conflicts, crises, and issues plaguing societies worldwide, challenging the attainment of true peace.

You can read
Through reading, you can easily access varied and widespread sources of information, news, and culture that can easily create diverse perspectives of what peace might mean from society to society.

You can see
Being able to visually observe scenes of violence, clashes, and protests through various means can often lead to disillusionment and a sense of hopelessness, essentially making it hard to establish true peace in the society.

You can hear
Through hearing and listening to various stories, accounts, arguments, and commentaries, people can easily feed into the overall discourse of why society should value and uphold peace through thoughtful, deliberative, conversational ways.

Just one thing
Out of all the things that the media presents to us on a daily basis, the one constant theme is violence - which can lead us to question the existence of true, lasting peace.

Violence
The endless perpetuity of conflicts and acts of violence in society can be regarded as one of the biggest hurdles of attaining true, lasting peace - a major theme addressed in this song by Artificial Peace.

Artificial peace
The precarious nature of peace that is often brought about by force, fear, or coercion and the possibility of falling short of actual peace represents the central theme conveyed in this song by Artificial Peace.

Contributed by Aiden P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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