Single

Raise Your Voice was the first single from No Substance and was released in Europe one or two weeks before the album. Inside the CD there is a picture of the band with Campino, the singer of Die Toten Hosen, who also appeared in the promo video. When Greg Graffin first saw the single (on the cover there's a picture of Greg screaming) his reaction was "this is ridiculous?" (they never know what's going to be on the cover of singles - that's up to Sony).

Versions

There are two versions of Raise Your Voice. The version on the European release of No Substance has Campino singing a number of lines. All other releases contain the version where Campino can only be heard in the backing vocals.

As of 2019, the European verison is the version featured on the streaming service Spotify. 

Song meaning

According to Graffin, the song is about the band's central theme, not to blindly follow any leader. There are too many rabble rousers in politics, religion, and the media.^[1]

Music video

The video was shot at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, where Robert F. Kennedy was killed in 1968. It was directed by the German director Kai Sehr. Approximately 20 actors were involved.

Inspiration

Graffin wrote the song after seeing a news report about an attack on an American abortion clinic, where two employees were killed by an anti-abortionist. None of the doctors had the courage to intervene because they feared another attack. According to Greg, everyone who doesn't have the courage (out of comfort or fear) to stand up will become an opportunist, like a herd of rats or voles.

References