Pepsi, please sue us... please?!

Negativland, so shell-shocked from being sued and threatened over the years, never officially titled this release "Dispepsi" (the album artwork says something like "Diespisp") Instead, they provided a 1-800 number for purchasers of this disc to call and have the release's title spoken to them over the phone. Genuine caution? or interesting marketing ploy? You never know with these guys, being the media manipulators / re-contextualizers that they are.

The Negativlanders have always been most effective when stirring up trouble (see/hear: Helter Stupid and the "banned" ep U2). Here they're trying to draw the ire of Pepsi Co. by reworking old soda pop commercials and news items into some kind of statement against the products it makes. However, I have my doubts that Pepsi will take the bait on this one. Since most of the material is culled from Pepsi commercials of old, the album feels more like an extended, nostalgic Pepsi ad. Only someone with an ear for deconstruction (ie: the average Negativland fan) will pick up on the anti-commercial/anti-media saturation commentary it contains. Anyone else hearing it will probably want to drink a Pepsi.

–Mattro

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