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Beastie Boys:
"We felt it was important
to comment on where the US appears to be heading now. A war in
Iraq will not resolve our problems. It can only result in the
deaths of many innocent civilians and US troops. If we are truly
striving for safety, we need to build friendships, not try to
bully the rest of the world." - Adam Yauch, March 2003
"I think a big part of wanting to do the song was just hearing
Bush make these speeches, seeing how the rest of the world was
reacting to it, and feeling like Bush doesn't represent us. One
of the purposes is to let people in other parts of the world know
that the messages he's sending out aren't necessarily the view
of all Americans. And it's also to say to people in the United
States who might be uncomfortable protesting that it's all right
to do that. One thing that the U.S. administration has been trying
to do is give the feeling that it's un-American to protest."
- Adam Yauch, 2003
"Being together, writing and recording, we felt it would
be irresponsible not to address what’s going on in the world
while the events are still current. It didn’t make sense
to us to wait until the entire record was finished to release
this song." - Mike Diamond,
March 2003
"This song is not an anti-American or pro-Saddam Hussein
statement. This is a statement against an unjustified war."
- Adam Horovitz, March 2003
Press & Print Media:
"The song takes a few swipes at President
George W. Bush, saying the American leader is launching a "mid-life
crisis war" and is "looking like Zoolander, trying to
play tough for the camera." - CBC News, March 2003
"On "In a World Gone Mad," they're in adorable
elder-statesman mode, trying so hard not to step on anybody's
toes that they end up achieving little beyond a kaffeeklatch complaint
voiced in reasonable tones over an affable beat. The first problem
is the chorus, growled by Adam Yauch in the middle of a reverb
hangover that muffles the sound. You want to be shouting along,
but instead you wind up just struggling to make out the words.
The Beastie Boys have always been funny, or at least clever, but
the rest of the lyrics don't rise above the level of a decent
Conan O'Brien monologue. It's cute that Adrock quotes Q-Tip ("Citizen
rule number 2080/Politicians are shady") but his wacky apology
to the nation just makes him sound like an opinionless bystander.
At the very end of the song we get a spark of what might have
been. The disappointment is amplified by what we know the Beasties
are capable of. The right pop song could use metaphor or delivery
or sheer sonics, among a zillion other strategies, to make its
point. It might even piss some people off. But this song sure
as hell won't." - MSN Slate, March 2003
"This ain't your mama's Pete Seeger or Bob Dylan. It's a
far cry from "Blowin' in the Wind", but for what's it's
worth, it may signal a new era for protest songs, and this is
a good thing. Of course, nobody seems to notice that Sleater-Kinney's
"Combat Rock", off last year's One Beat, was decidedly
anti-authority, but let's not split hairs in protest. Even though
many celebrities have spoken out on the impending war in Iraq,
much of the mainstream music scene has been silent thus far. The
Beastie Boys have decided that the time is now to weigh in with
a protest rap in response to the imminent death and destruction.
"In a World Gone Mad", is available for free download
on the Boys' website. An unnamed source has also come forward
claiming that a Clear Channel station has added this seditious
track to heavy rotation. Whoa! What bleeding heart program director
gave the thumbs up to that one?"
"While the song is neither profound nor esoteric, we admire
the socially conscious hip-hoppers for their effort, and they
do manage to provide a few salty jabs at the former alliance between
the U.S. and Iraq in the process: "You and Saddam should
kick it like back in the day/With the cocaine and Courvoisier/But
you build more bombs as you get more bold/As your mid-life crisis
war unfolds." Okay, so some of the lyrics a tad cheesy. But
cheese and salt, hey maybe they're onto something: "Now don't
get us wrong/'Cause we love America/But that's no reason to get
hysterica!" Hmm. Okay. So it's not as eloquent as "The
Message"-- or even, really, Whodini's "The Freaks Come
Out at Night". But it's a start! People, we gotta start somewhere."
- Marnie Christenson, pitchforkmedia.com 2003
"[An] up-tempo song, which features a simple rhythm and
rudimentary samples, has the old-school feel of a Run
DMC track. The buoyancy of the beats contrasts with the lyrics,
which criticize the Bush's administration's eagerness to attack
Iraq." - MTV News, March 2003
"The Beasties may have been driven to create "In a
World Gone Mad" because they felt like Bush was turning a
deaf ear to the screaming voices of anti-war protesters, but they
said they were also motivated after hearing rumors that artists
were discouraged from mentioning the Middle East conflict during
the Grammy Awards. After so much disinformation, the Boys decided
some old-school learning was in order." - MTV News, March
2003
"Though the song has a similar title to the Beenie Man reggae
song "World Gone Mad," which laments social conditions
and asks the president for an explanation, the Beastie Boys said
they were unaware of the other song. Their song mixes lyrics advocating
nonviolence and multilateral disarmament with the band's sense
of whimsy. Thus a deep thought is followed immediately by a rhyme
like "They're layin' on the syrup thick/We ain't waffles,
we ain't havin' it." - New York Times, March 2003
"[An] anti-war tirade: over a herky-jerky beat, the song
attacks President Bush, but it also flashes trademark Beasties
humor" - Rolling Stone, 2003
"Protesting the war in Iraq with a demented seriousness
only they could pull off. Best line, Adam Yauch: "George
Bush, you're looking like Zoolander, trying to play tough for
the camera" - Rolling Stone's Hotlist, 2003
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