Hounds of Love by Kate Bush
As a teenager, before I developed a political consciousness, I was aware of how my experience as a young girl differed from the experiences of young boys. Kate described it perfectly. Belting out her lyrics prepared me for a future full of protest. – Alexandra
Life During Wartime by Talking Heads
I’ve long felt we should be on, if not a war footing, then a crisis footing. I listen to this exhilarating song when driving to a demo, act of resistance or solidarity action. Its pace and momentum energises, fuels courage and I feel relief. At last we are doing something. – Darcy
Aik Alif (The Letter A) by Saieen Zahoor
The words and rhythms of 16th century Sufi poet Bulleh Shah sung by folk singer Zahoor hit deep: ‘You read so much to become a scholar, but never bothered to learn about yourself.’ A reminder of the need to self-reflect, question our motives in movements and always centre peoples and ecologies first. – Sanaa
Nightmare Logic by Power Trip
I like political music to feel truly angry. Few records convey a sense of blistering rage against systemic injustice like Nightmare Logic. Its call to action is delivered through a furious barrage of churning riffs and thunderous vocals as the best thrash metal album of the 2010s. – Gerry
Tracy Chapman by Tracy Chapman
I first heard Chapman’s soulful voice and frank lyrics over a decade after release. I was 16 and post-9/11 US ‘freedom’ narratives were paving the way to war. Unwaveringly anti consumerist, clear-eyed on class, racism, patriarchy and injustice, Chapman compelled me to question ‘Why?’ – and know that revolution is possible, if we want it. – Siobhan
The Holy Bible by The Manic Street Preachers
For a subset of 1990s teenagers, the Manics’ politics-forward rock was a revelation. Their 1994 album was a challenge and an antidote to the neoliberal complacency of Britpop and Blairism. Thirty years later, its themes – resurgent fascism, cultural censorship, post industrial nihilism and the search for political purpose after the ‘end of history’ – still reverberate. – Rhian
Oughta Be A Woman by Sweet Honey In The Rock
Friends in feminist and anti-racist organising in 1980s London introduced me to this gospel acapella group of African-American women. My mum particularly loved this track. One line always hits me: ‘What do you think would be her surprise / If the world were as willing as she’s able?’ We never talked about it, but I felt it spoke to so many layers of loss in the lives and histories of black and brown women of a certain generation. – Yasmin
Little Boxes by Pete Seeger
Aged 13, this song pushed my schoolgirl rebellion into a wider rejection of the class conformity associated with modern capitalism. Its witty, tuneful evocation of professional middle-class suburbia accorded with a fate I feared and had to escape. It gave me confidence to make the break and refuse to conform! – Hilary
About Time by Pennywise
With raw energy, crashing drums, and machine gun-like riffs, the punk band unleashed a blistering attack on the sterility of modern society. Rallying against the tediousness of everyday life and having to endure dogmatic social values, Pennywise forcefully calls us to wake up to cultural repression. – David
