Sovereign Citizen

Interview with Zaq Flanary of Sovereign Citizen
By Melissa Crowess

Since 2003 Zaq Flanary has been a strong independent voice for his generation. As a nationally syndicated talk radio host, a professional writer, cartoonist and a popular independent musician-Zaq has become more than just a voice from the fringe, he is a new kind of personality that isn’t right, left or center; in his own words he’s “not a shepherd, nor a sheep just a stray.”

Sovereign Citizen is Zaq’s latest musical project and the band’s moniker itself implies the vision for the group.
“Sovereign Citizenship is the idea of being your own nation unto yourself,” Zaq said. “Sovereign Citizens are as free as kings and queens in their own right. The constitution the United States used to guaranteed that-before the lawyers came.” Zaq and I sat down at a small coffee shop in Spokane, WA for a full interview.

Nightlife Network: Thanks for sitting down with us.
Zaq Flanary: Thanks for having me.
N2: We know how busy you have been lately. Would you tell us about what you have been up to?
ZF: It’s been a busy year. I’ve been writing and recording demos since last March (2008) for the Sovereign Citizen project. I’ve also been busy with my radio show and playing as many gigs as I can.
N2: You are the host of a nationally syndicated radio show called…
ZF: The Tin Foil Hat Times…I know, I know.
N2: So you talk about conspiracies and UFOs and Big Foot.
ZF: We have discussed all of those things, yes, but the show’s name is more like a Trojan horse. I get away with saying some pretty intense stuff, and I think I get to say more truth than most talk radio. Listeners of my show know that truth is king at TFHT.
N2: How often is it on?
ZF: Two hours a week, every Saturday from 4-6 pm Pacific Time. You can get it live online at KYRS.org or you can visit our website at TFHTimes.com and you can also check your local Pacifica affiliates for stations near you.
N2: How do you find time to do all of it?
ZF: I try not to sleep. Actually I have a team of half-drugged monkeys in my basement and at my record label that work year round, 24 hours a day to keep the mechanism clean. Most of the time they end up just throwing their shit around.
N2: Back to music. You wrote over 200 songs for the band from March ’08 to March ’09…what is your process like?
ZF: Songwriting has so many different forms, all of which I enjoy, but to be honest each and every one of those songs was channeled more than written.
N2: Channeled?
ZF: It sounds funny I know, but I have always felt like a vessel for…entities. Some people call them demons, and sometimes that’s what they feel like. Music is the language of emotion and the closest thing to magic that I am aware of…so yeah…I think Baal wrote Lo-Fi Manifesto through me while I was sleeping.
N2: I love the title of the new album, Lo-Fi Manifesto. What does that mean to you?
ZF: I recorded the whole album on a simple computer program with a cheap microphone and a busted up acoustic guitar…compared to a Metallica album, that’s pretty Lo-Fi. Also, the subject material and my lifestyle also reminded my wife of a Ted Kazinski style-character. Hence the Manifesto part.
N2: The uni-bomber?
ZF: Yeah, but without the terrorist undertones.
N2: It’s the revolutionary vibe that you give off.
ZF: (laughs) I’m all for revolution as long as there is a solution. I just don’t think people have too many of those.
N2: Is it hard to be an activist/musician today? Does it limit your options?
ZF: Yes and no. Mainstream media doesn’t appreciate realities that compete with the bullshit they are spinning, so usually my stuff is reserved for those who have found their way out of the box. But to be truthful, it doesn’t matter, I am going to do what I do because I am compelled, whether it gets my videos on MTV or my songs on Clear Channel or not. I am a journalist with a guitar…and I only care about truth. If a million people hear what I have to say, okay, if ten do, okay. I just care about the one or two seeds that might come from it.
N2: What kind of seeds are those?
ZF: It’s all subjective. My music is positive even those it deals in negatives. I hope I plant positive seeds that lead to more critical thought and less apathy.
N2: What is on the agenda for the rest of 2009 and next year?
ZF: Good question. I’d say it’s time to play. I’d like to do 250 dates over that span and hopefully get across the drink to our friends in the UK.
N2: I know this is a weird question since you have four albums out since ’08 and Lo-Fi Manifesto came out just a few days ago, but I heard you talking about another new album or two.
ZF: I like to make records. I don’t even know if we can call these projects “records” anymore, but I love to write songs, all the time…this is what I do for my own serenity. So yes, there will be at least one album a year for the remainder of my life if possible. We already have a solo acoustic CD almost ready and I’ve already written several new tracks for the next full length.
N2: Will there be a sequel to Lo-Fi Manifesto?
ZF: Probably, but I would rather do a Hi-Fi Manifesto…maybe work with a non-coke smoking Hollywood producer and spend a few hundred thousand dollars.
N2: You also sing for the metal band Black the Sky, what are they up to?
ZF: We are working hard at corrupting as many children as possible…and our first full length album.
N2: Any tours?
ZF: As of now Black the Sky is unsigned so touring is on our own dime. We are writing and honing the live show and really working on making a world class recording. We want to tour more than anything, but we’re going to find the right indie label first.
N2: No major label?
ZF: I don’t think so. First of all, actively courting a major label doesn’t sound fun at all. Second-and thank God-major labels are becoming extinct. Third, I am a growing independent business that doesn’t like debt. And last, an indie-label is really just a few ambitious people with some cash, connections, expertise and a website. Those are the tools that Black the Sky needs. Huge labels aren’t necessary or preferable. I want to entertain, educate and have an adventure or two with BTS, not juggle for assholes who sell plastic discs and tabloid fodder.
N2: What about World Citizen Records as a home for Black the Sky? They have signed a few of your other projects.
ZF: World Citizen Records doesn’t have any metal. I would say World Citizen Records is all about the singer/songwriter genres, the experimental rock/pop stuff and the cultural activism. Metal is an animal all to itself. BTS is better served on a label that specializes in heaviness.
N2: Before we let you get out of here, I wanted to talk about your website SOVcitizen.com. The content on that site blew my mind.
ZF: SOVcitizen.com is pretty cool. Besides home base to the music, we offer a lot of other products that range from health products to books on mind control to advise, back episodes of my radio show, articles, cartoons and videos.
N2: You can actually by food on your website.
ZF: The best food in the world, yes. We practice what we teach. WE put out a quarterly publication called the Sovereign Citizen Journal that acts as a newsletter and a huge catalogue of health and wellness products, books, videos and a whole lot of other stuff I think you should have.
N2: Thank you for sitting down with us.
ZF: It was fun, thanks for the coffee and the free press. - The Nightlife Network