By Keith Walsh
Dr. Nishant Joshi made headlines in 2020 when he won his case against the British government with a COVID-related judicial review. An NHS physician, Joshi and his wife Dr. Meenal Viz sued for better protections for his colleagues working on the front lines of the pandemic.
Just like the fictional Buckaroo Banzai, Joshi is not only a physician – he’s a rocker. His band Kill, The Icon! combines aggressive electric guitar with pulsating synth beats. In his new single “Heavy Heart,” Joshi’s brand of dance punk takes on the hatred of racists, and the politicians who enable them.
It’s a message for our time. In the post Boris Johnson, post Trump age, the corrosive influences of these polarizing figures remain sadly relevant. It seems that punk rock is an ideal vehicle to get the message out: hate will not be tolerated at any level.
“Heavy Heart” is the first single from an upcoming album, Your Anger Is Rational, due June 2 on Blaggers Records. Joshi, who sings and plays bass, tells of the inspiration for the song’s message: ‘’I was faced with racial slurs when I was younger, but nobody has uttered a racial epithet to my face for many years. But, I know the racists who existed in the 90s are still alive and well. They didn’t die out all of a sudden, and neither did their ideas. So, the point of this song is that everyone acknowledges that racists exist. But nobody will ever admit to being racist – so where did they all go? My answer is that they all wear disguises: as politicians, right-wing journalists, and talking heads for shady think-tanks. The brazen racism has retreated into the shadows, and subtle racism has taken over.”
Dr. Joshi and Dr. Viz launched their lawsuit in 2020 over concerns sparked by healthcare standards in Britain during the beginning of the COVID pandemic, including doctors being asked to reuse disposable masks. Seems that this doctor slash rockstar has a lot of activism in his heart. Looking forward to Kill, The Icon!’s album Your Anger Is Rational.
Nishant Joshi on Twitter
Kill, The Icon on Instagram
Kill, The Icon on Youtube
British Government Denies Changes Caused By Lawsuit
finis