PRONG's TOMMY VICTOR On Voicing Political Opinions: 'I Try To Keep My Mouth Shut These Days For Sure'

In a new interview with Germany's Moshpit Passion, PRONG mainman Tommy Victor explained why he doesn't voice his political opinions publicly nowadays. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I try to keep my mouth shut these days for sure. So that's my rule… I just don't wanna be labeled anything. People have very quick and easy interpretations of everybody and are very fast to generalize everybody and categorize everybody, and I don't want anything to do with it, really.

When the interviewer pointed out that fan chatter in a PRONG Facebook group appeared to be more civil and less focused on non-musical topics than is the case with a lot of other bands' social media followers, Tommy said: "Well, that really makes me feel good, because a lot of our fans are older, from a time when these things were secondary and friendships were more important. It's just a mature attitude about things. Of course the '60s was different, where there was people getting sent [to war]… That was a crucial time. Now, all this stuff today, it's, like, what are you complaining about? Back in the '60s, kids in America, boys were sent to war and dying at 19… drafted unwillingly. So we don't have that anymore. Now people complain about everything. I mean, it's, like, what is there really to be that unhappy about? The only thing I'm really unhappy about is the cost of things. Especially when you have kids, which I have three, to make ends meet with the way prices got crazy in America, just out of control overnight. That's why I'm, like… There is a conspiracy behind that a little bit, because overnight everything just got insane."

Back in July 2017, when PureGrainAudio played a fun game of "Metal Or Not?" with Victor, he was asked if then-U.S. president Donald Trump was "metal or not". Victor said: "Donald Trump is definitely metal: anti-establishment, not very politically correct, [and he] pisses a lot of people off."

Tommy previously told YELL! Magazine usually doesn't get that heavily political in his lyrics. He said: "[PRONG's] '[X -] No Absolutes' [album] had little tinges of it. What I do, I take a box and I'll throw a little bit of politics with spirituality and punk rock mentality into this collage and that's what the lyrics seem to come out. That makes it PRONG, that makes it different, but, obviously, there's been a lot to pick and choose from. But it's all fake news anyhow."

He continued: "It's amazing. This is a Canadian show, or web site, so I don't know how slanted the news is up here, but it's unbelievable in America, where just a change of the channels you get a completely different perspective on everything. It's all paid off by somebody. Somebody is putting these knuckleheads on television to say what the advertisers want and the people with the money behind it who want to get their agendas across. It's an absolute joke. That's a stimulus for a lot of the lyrics right there. On '[X -] No Absolutes', [the song] 'Cut And Dry', it's about that. You're told something, then you believe it, then something happens that's contrary to your belief and then you're like, 'What happened?' I was like 'Well, you're an idiot. You listened to this nonsense to begin with.'"

PRONG's thirteenth studio album, "State Of Emergency", will arrive on October 6 via Steamhammer/SPV.

"State Of Emergency" is a furious tableau of East Coast aggression, enveloped in that classic PRONG sound that never goes out of style.

Produced by the skillful hands of legendary producer Steve Evetts (SEPULTURA, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN),"State Of Emergency" surprises on the post-punk track "Disconnected" and then grooves on the title track. Originally released as a standalone single in early 2023, "Breaking Point" takes no prisoners with honest lyrics and cutting attitude, while hard-hitting "The Descent" is a lightning quick, classic ripper.

The album closes with a cover of "Working Man", originally written and recorded by the legendary RUSH.