Writer Kim Kelly took Dragonforce to task over offensive lyrics. Is that really fair of the person who once handled PR for Anal C*nt?
Yesterday, the metal corner of the Internet was abuzz with reaction over an
interview Noisey published in which writer
Kim Kelly grilled
Dragonforce members over the homophobic and racist lyrics employed by
Demoniac, a defunct band featuring three original Dragonforce members. In case the intent of the interview wasn't clear, the piece was helpfully titled "Confronting Dragonforce About Their Racist, Homophobic Past." While some readers applauded Kelly for confronting the musicians, others saw a literary assault dripping with righteous indignation. One Lambgoat Facebook reader nicely encapsulated the opinion of many with this sarcastic quip: "I think everyone should be held accountable for things they did and said when they were teenagers."
Fine, Demoniac had some vile lyrics and Kelly called them out. It's not the end of the world and Dragonforce will survive.
However, as I was perusing the comments to our
news item on the Noisey piece, an astute Lambgoat reader pointed out that Kelly recently handled publicity for
Anal C*nt. Wait, what?
Yes, it's true. In addition to her various writing gigs -- she has an impressive resume -- Kelly heads Catharsis PR, a competent public relations firm for a handful of bands, including Wolvserpent, Coffinworm, and Fight Amp. It was Catharsis PR that handled the final Anal C*nt album, released shortly before the death of frontman Seth Putnam. In fact, it was Kelly herself who publicly
confirmed Putnam's untimely demise.
If you're not familiar with Anal C*nt, the controversial grindcore act is responsible for some of the most sexist, racist, and homophobic lyrics in existence. I could regurgitate them here for you, but I wouldn't want to offend our sensitive readers. If you're curious, you can check out the lyrics to the very A.C. album that Kelly and Catharsis PR promoted
here. It's not pretty, but certainly consistent with A.C.'s past offerings. It's what they were known for.
So, Kelly took money from A.C. and Putnam to promote some of their lyrically offensive catalog, but then later publicly confronted Dragonforce over offensive lyrics?
Kelly is good at what she does, both writing and PR, but this whole thing is absurdly hypocritical on her part.
UPDATE: Though she says she hasn't read this article, Kelly posted the following via Twitter (in her profile picture, she sports a Demonic Christ shirt) shortly after we published this thing.
"I did PR for an AxCx release in 2011. It was a decision that I obviously regret, but I've learned from past mistakes and take accountability...
[responding to question regarding our piece]
"No, I haven't even read it; just thought it was worth saying. It sucks to be 'called out,' but just goes to show. We all fuck up."
