⚠️ TRIGGER WARNING – SET LIST THIRTEEN (13) This set contains graphic political commentary, anti-imperial critique, systemic inequality, state violence, and global moral failure. It pulls no punches. There's satire, but no humor — just the bitter burn of truth stated too plainly for some to bear. Use caution if you are sensitive to: Genocide, war crimes, and historical injustice Police brutality, judicial corruption, state-sponsored violence Poverty, systemic oppression, and economic exploitation Disillusionment with government and media control Mentions of execution, hanging, and death sentences Anger at religion, American imperialism, and institutional betrayal Mental health under pressure of social collapse Racial and class-based inequality Extreme emotional exhaustion or activist burnout Hopelessness in the face of a broken system This list does not glamorize violence but names it, points to the perpetrators, and forces you to look. There is zero sugar-coating, even when poems wax lyrical. The emotions here are acidic — often disguised in performance, rhythm, or irony, but not diluted. HIGHEST IMPACT TRACKS (by topic): State Violence & Genocide: "East Timor" Harrowing account of U.S.-funded genocide and global apathy. Accusations of complicity by military-industrial complex and mass media. Contains imagery of children dying, political slaughter, and denialism. "You can hide a genocide / Started back before 1975…" Warning: this song is raw, righteous, and infuriating. Listeners with experience in war zones, refugee crises, or political trauma may find it extremely activating. Death Penalty / Incarceration / State Surveillance: "Gettin' Juiced," "Gate Keeper," "Sleepless," "Steady Calm" Themes of death row, wrongful imprisonment, paranoia, revolution crushed in silence. Imagery includes snipers on roofs, bugged conversations, systemic betrayal, hanging, and failed legal justice. "Steady Calm" ends with a lynching metaphor, delivered with heavy political irony. "Legs dance and then dangle / Silhouetting the gable…" Capitalism, Class War, and Corporate Corruption: "Poorest Chorus," "Uncashable," "Permanent Lies," "Mickey D's," "Can't Have That" Direct indictments of wealth inequality, corporate propaganda, and poverty as policy. "Poorest Chorus" in particular is a devastating indictment of post-Katrina America, the collapse of public education, and "Walmartization" as systemic decay. "People getting hosed but not being able to take a bath / In Katrina's aftermath" This set will absolutely distress anyone disillusioned by American decline or complicit in its rise. It's not subtle. Indigenous Genocide / Colonization: "Staking the Flag" Explores the Trail of Tears, Native American genocide, and American mythologizing of conquest. Biting satire delivered through cadence and rhyme — mocking Manifest Destiny with brutal accuracy. "The cavalry is about to charge / No dancing with wolves / When you're waltzing with Custard…" Mental Health / Political Despair: "Steady Calm," "Mickey D's," "Sleepless," "Uncashable" Several pieces mention disassociation, paranoia, suicidal ideation, or deep hopelessness. "Mickey D's" reads like a man unraveling in real-time, spiritually and cognitively burnt out. "Sleepless" presents existential regret wrapped in philosophical aphorism. ADDITIONAL THEMES TO WATCH FOR: Satirical deconstruction of nationalism and pledges ("Pledge") Exploitation through globalization ("Permanent Lies") The rage of the ignored working class ("Can't Have That," "United We Stand") Disillusionment with revolutions that never came INTENDED EFFECT This set is meant to anger, educate, destabilize, and provoke change. It's full of "truths people know but rarely say," laid bare with poetic fire and no apology. There is no comfort here — only confrontation. You will leave this set smarter, sadder, angrier — or you will walk away. That is the wager it makes. 📍WHO SHOULD AVOID THIS LIST Avoid or delay listening if you are: In a fragile mental health state already triggered by systemic injustice Deeply sensitive to war imagery or genocide denial Struggling with anger dysregulation or PTSD rooted in political violence Looking for healing, peace, or calm — this is not that list WHO MAY BENEFIT Political activists Survivors of systemic oppression Students of history or policy who need an emotional lens Those burned out by the news who want to feel seen SUMMARY Set 13 is a call-to-arms, not a balm. A document of frustration, exhaustion, and clear-eyed fury. It is deliberately uncomfortable — because the world it describes is. And if it keeps you up at night… that's the point. If you need to, take breaks, split songs up, or skip entirely. You've been warned. POWER SHIELDS SET LIST THIRTEEN (13) 1 Can't Have That 2 Gettin' Juiced 3 Gate Keeper 4 Uncashable 5 Permanent Lies 6 Mickey D's 7 Poorest Chorus 8 Staking the Flag 9 United We Stand 10 Pledge 11 Sleepless 12 East Timor 13 Steady Calm