Get the Vote Out with Decemberists, Xiu Xiu

With midterm elections not far off, bands like the Decemberists, Xiu Xiu, TV On the Radio, the Long Winters, Rogue Wave, Minus the Bear, the Dresden Dolls, and others are partnering with Music for America and giving away free tickets to their shows to anyone who volunteers to register voters at the venue. Music for America (MFA) is a nonprofit organization working to spark young peoples’ interest in politics.

“Young people talking to their friends at concerts is definitely the best way to get our generation truly engaged in politics,” Molly Moon Neitzel, Executive Director of MFA, told SPIN.com. “MFA volunteers are able to connect politics to real life when they’re talking to people at shows, and that’s why it works.”

Jennifer Otter, MFA’s Music Director, said MFA is also focused on giving bands a platform to get involved. “A lot of bands want to be involved, but they need to be given the opportunity to be involved,” she said. “I reached out through my network to get Cut Chemist involved, and now he’s uniting with other MFA artists around the universal health care issue. And then a band like Death Cab for Cutie came to MFA to get their fans out to vote in the last presidential election and has had MFA volunteers on their tours ever since.”

Talk: Do you plan on volunteering to get the vote out and see some sweet bands? COMMENT