Holy Shit! Living With Lions Returning FACTOR Grant, Recalling Albums

May 24, 2011

by CHARTattack Robot

If you bought a copy of Living With Lions‘ Holy Shit album when it came out last week, hang onto it. Those of you who want a collector’s item should immediately head out to stores to get one… and fast. We mean lickety split fast. Right now. Stat.

That’s because the Vancouver band are recalling all copies of the record and are returning the $13,248 grant they received from FACTOR, the Foundation To Assist Canadian Talent On Records, to support the record.

Why? Well, if you remember back to last week, quite a significant controversy was generated when heritage minister James Moore took issue with the fact that FACTOR — which is supported by the Department Of Canadian Heritage — had funded the album, which featured artwork depicting Jesus as a “turd” and Holy Shit‘s album cover that looks like this:

The ensuing controversy saw right-wing commenters like Ezra Levant suggest that public funding for “so-called musicians” should be withdrawn. D.O.A. frontman Joey “Shithead” Keithley also commented on the matter this weekend, saying the issue shows that with a Conservative majority government in power in Ottawa, things don’t bode well for FACTOR.

But now Holy Shit is being taken off the shelves.

“The product will be withdrawn from the domestic market immediately, and we requested our international partners to withdraw product internationally as well,” Black Box Music’s Ian Stanger said in a statement on Tuesday.

But before you flip your lid, this doesn’t mean the album will be permanently removed from stores.

“We understand the band’s desire to maintain their creative integrity,” Stanger’s statement continues. “Therefore the album will be re-released as a non-FACTOR supported project in the coming weeks.

“The material was not intended to be offensive, though we regret it was interpreted that way. Further, we regret the negative attention that this matter has brought to FACTOR.

“FACTOR is an integral part of supporting and sustaining Canadian music domestically and internationally, and their support of our work and that of other Canadian musicians is invaluable.”

The statement and result of what’s being done with the record are already generating discussion.

“Well, besides subsidizing some of Canada’s non-neediest musicians, now, FACTOR is a censoring body,” FemBots member Nathan Lawr said in a comment on Black Box’s website.

You can see Living With Lions here:

May 24 St. Catharines, ON @ L3 !
May 25 Toronto, ON @ Sneaky Dee’s !
May 26 London, ON @ London Music Hall !
May 27 Windsor, ON @ Blind Dog !
May 28 Howell, MI @ The Heartland Pac (Bled Fest)
May 30 Des Moines, IA @ 504 Club
June 1 Fargo, ND @ The New Direction
June 2 Regina, SK @ The Club at The Exchange
June 3 Medicine Hat, AB @ The Kinplex Arena Social Room
Oct. 28-30 Gainesville, FL @ The Fest 10

! w/ Such Gold

Holy Shit! Living With Lions Returning FACTOR Grant, Recalling Albums

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