Shiny dildos, pin-dick politicians, consumption whores, and the lives lived in the margins. Our young minds sucked it all in through busted speakers as Kerner fucked around on every turn as we cruised in his Mom’s ’88 Astro Van to the next skate spot. We were young and wired on life and Propagandhi’s Less Talk, More Rock was the kind of fast furious flag burning melodic punk rock album that every skeptical young punk would love. That was 5 years ago, and this is today. Vanessa from Fat Wreck Chords called and said Propagandhi’s “Humanitarian Intervention Tour” is about to pillage it’s way through San Francisco, and the band wants to talk. I laugh. Of course they want to talk. Album number three, Today’s Empires, Tomorrow’s Ashes, is just out to the masses and, in my own words from the actual telephone conversation, “their most righteous and progressive release to date.” Vanessa told me to bring three Heckler t-shirts XXL (for a bunch of vegans!) and hook up with the band backstage at the Maritime Hall. When Vanessa and I rendezvoused at 9 PM I was quickly escorted backstage to interview the band. Upon arrival, there was no Chris (lead vox/guitar) or drummer, Jord. Two thirds of Propagandhi are so punk rock they don’t even show up for interviews. Todd said they were sleeping, but I could hear a party in the next room. I bet money they were getting loaded in there with easy chicks. Fucking rock stars. Instead I got the craziest bass playin’ Canadian I have ever met, Todd The Rod. Todd isn’t even the original bassist, and in all my lousy journalistic endeavors I couldn’t even find out his last name, but he assured me he wrote a bunch of songs on the new album, and that his old band, I Spy, rocked Regina, Saskatchewan like no one since. I told him if he gave me a T-shirt like the one he was wearing with George Bush Sr. umbilacal corded to Hitler about to put on a George Bush Jr. mask we’d call it even and put them in the mag.

Todd The Rod. Is that your porno name?
Sure. My brother gave me that name because Todd rhymed with Rod, but we’d like to think for other reasons.

You’re from Manitoba? What town?
Winnipeg.

It snows a lot there?
Fuck yeah. It’s the coldest place in the world, with a population over 500,000, or something like that.

What’s the Hitler quote you guys put on the CD?
“How fortunate for governments that the people they administer don’t think.” You can also see that just as easily in the US or Canada.

You know Hitler only had one nut.
Then we oughta pull down George W’s pants and take a look.

What has the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) done for Canada?
Cracked it on the skull with a nail, and ruined it, sucked out some trees, and helped some corporations, but not anybody within the country. Every street corner of America is now perfectly identical and Styrofoam packed to order. I guess it’s the same in Canada.You go to Europe, Australia, Japan and it’s the same too. It’s more depressing because it’s on the other side of the world. Being in a band you travel so much and you see the homogenization of it all. It’s all fucking nonsense, because it’s empty. There is nothing of value. Like in the US, Canada, Mexico, Australia, and Hawaii, all of the aboriginal culture is wiped out and replaced with what? A hollow fucking fast food restaurant that’s a meaningless unhealthy void.

Any words of advice you can give the skate/snowboard community?
Make all your skating progressive.

With all that snow in Canada, what do you like to do when it’s cold outside?
Not ski, skate, or snowboard. I catch the bus and I walk, although it seems like fun. I used to ski every now and then, but we’re on the plains, so there aren’t many mountains out there.