COSMIC NINJA

DIGGING DEEPER COSMIC NINJA

POLITICAL AND SOCIAL TURMOIL...

When we started Cosmic Ninja we didn’t set out to be political. We were drawn together by our love of rock and electronic music, and our desire to merge the two into something fresh and exciting to us as musicians. We’ve all gigged in the UK scene in previous bands but connected over our project to splice the power and heaviness of a rock band with the colours, euphoria and characters of synths and electronic sounds. Our aim is to make music you can party to that will have you heading banging in the mosh pit one moment and raving away into the night the next. We have always thought of Cosmic Ninja as a way to bring people together and promote inclusivity but most importantly have a good time. are worrying times, we are more divided than ever, and the limits we will go to maximise profit and personal gain knows no bounds. People act too often as individuals and have lost their empathy for their common neighbour. This has been driven largely from the top by the government and complicit media cheerleading them on. Brexit and the aftermath was a turning point for us as a band. From here on out we had an awakening to what was happening. The deliberate attempt to divide us and pit people against each other as a political power play has been difficult to watch. The atmosphere in the UK is so toxic we knew we wanted to talk about what we were seeing and feeling through our music.

I can’t even imagine what people looking at the UK from other countries think. We have a corrupt government that continuously lies, manipulates the public, sells itself to the highest bidder or Russian oligarch and who will go to any lengths and stoop to any depths to hold on to power.

They don’t work for us, they work for themselves.

“WE ARE TIRED OF LIVING IN FEAR AND WORRYING ABOUT OUR FUTURE AS A COUNTRY AND OUR SPECIES, THE CHARLATANS MILKING SOCIETY DRY FOR THEIR OWN BENEFIT...”

Despite the blatant corruption, numerous scandals, and increasing lack of any sort of moral code or decency, they get away with it. People don’t care though, they are not engaged with what is going on. In this technological age it is so easy to keep yourself in the loop but perhaps we don’t want to as that same technology gives us the means to distract ourselves, draw all the air from the echo chambers we trap ourselves in, to manipulate others and discourage the search for truth and critical thought.

Alas, it’s not just the UK, this is global. If you look at Trump, or what is happening in Russia and how Putin has used the state controlled media to create his own narrative you can see mirrors of what is going on in the UK. The unquestionable impact that Russian money in our country is having is at last starting to seep through and prompt the serious questions it deserves, but it shouldn’t take a war for this to be We are tired of living in fear and worrying about our future as a country and our species, the charlatans milking society dry for their own benefit, and most importantly the inequality that has festered and grown exponentially. This has had a profound effect on how we feel and has proven to be fruitful as a source of inspiration, and formed a natural path for us to take in our lyrics.

But it's not all bad, living in Bristol provides us with hope and positivity as we see the promotion of liberal values and acceptance on our doorsteps every day. The toppling of the Edward Colston statue was a moment of extreme pride for us as Bristol leads the way and puts itself on the map championing social justice. In our own way we hope we can make some contribution to keep it there. Our music is shaped by the local experience we have had, the community here and the sharing of amazing moments, such as performing major LGBTQ events which we have a deep connection to, and even the deaf community. These moments keep us going, give us hope and remind us that there is good out there and a place for us all, but we have to keep fighting for it.

Words by Cosmic Ninja

Our new EP "Dissident Transmission" is our best work yet and a culmination of our development musically and the lyric journey we have been on.

This EP shows who we are as a band and our message that has evolved from this political and social turmoil. We want people to hear it and hopefully resonate with it, and give people encouragement to stand up and fight in a positive way to make real change.

Photography by Rupert Gammond