WITH their vile chants of “death, death to the IDF” at Glastonbury this weekend, punk-rap duo Bob Vylan left thousands of music fans across the country appalled.
The stunt – referring to the killing of the Israel Defence Forces – has been slammed as “appalling hate speech” by the Prime Minister that risked “inciting violence”.
Comprised of Ipswich-born frontman Pascal Robinson-Foster, who performs as Bobby Vylan, and Londoner drummer Bobbie Vylan, the band now face calls for them to be arrested and prosecuted.
Arguably festival organisers – and the BBC – should have seen this coming from a band who relish controversy, claim to be “too extreme” to be signed by any record label and have lyrics including “kill the f***ing Queen”.
Such is the level of violence and hatred in their lyrics that they have been considered “too extreme” for the band to be officially signed by a major record label, so they trade under their own, which is called Ghost Theatre.
This meant they hand-delivered albums to record stores personally and booked their own shows before landing success and touring with Biffy Clyro and Offspring, and performing at Reading and Leeds festivals in 2021.
“Everyone is here bigging up Atlantic, bigging up Warner – f*** that! Big us up, because we did it without a major label budget,” Pascal said in 2022.
Anti-monarchy, anti-British and pro-Palestine, Bob Vylan has proudly declared in the past how “trying to wind people up” is one of the few ways to “derive enjoyment from living in this country”.
“If I can just say a thing and you’ll get upset then that feels like a small victory and I’ll print it on a T-shirt and wear that T-shirt every day,” Pascal told Tribune Magazine in 2022.
In the wake of their Glastonbury set, which has received widespread condemnation including from Emily Eavis, who claimed it “very much crossed a line”, Pascal shared a smirking snap of himself captioned: “While zionists are crying on socials, I’ve just had late night (vegan) ice cream.”
Since forming in 2017, Bob Vylan – who perform under stage names to maintain privacy in the face of what they call a “surveillance state” – has revelled in stirring up anger with controversial messaging and lyrics, and even threatened violence against their own fans.
Pascal – who previously performed as ‘Nee-Hi’ in grime group Ear 2 Da Street in his early teens – has claimed he was inspired by his “boring” childhood in Ipswich.
He began creating music on the Playstation game Music 2000, while living on a diet of “typical oven dinners” like “chicken kievs and potato waffles”. Around a decade ago he went vegan.
Pascal characterises his angry, resentful lyrics as “a reflection of the anger from systemic mistreatment”, according to The Guardian, with the struggles of being a black man in Europe a recurring theme in the band’s repertoire.
He claimed he was seven years old when he was first called the N-word and described the violence his “bredrin were surrounded by” as a teenager.
In We Live Here, Pascal rapped: “Neighbours called me ‘n*****’, told me ‘go back to my own country’; Said since we arrived, this place has got so ugly; But this is my f***ing country and it’s never been f***ing lovely.”
He also claimed to suffer at the hands of a cruel landlord when he was a young dad – “a baby with a baby” – stuck living in dangerous housing conditions.
“It was cold, it was damp, the windows were not double glazed, there was mould,” he told The Guardian.
“The extractor fan caught fire when we were not home and there was a fire in the flat. Came home and whole place was black; everything smelled like smoke.
“And the landlord couldn’t give a f***. My partner got pneumonia during the pregnancy because of it. And he just didn’t care.”
Vile ‘kill the Queen’ chants
Pascal raps there is “nothing great” about Great Britain in the 2024 track Makes Me Violent, and sickeningly called for the late Queen’s death in the band’s 2020 release England’s Ending.
The vile lyrics read: “This country’s in dire need of a f***ing spanking, mate; Look it over, get the f***ing dinosaurs out; Yeah, and kill the f***ing Queen; She killed Diana, we don’t love her anyway.”
Their anti-monarchy stance is also evident on the track Reign, where Pascal raps: “Got a message for the thieves in the palace, we want the jewels back.”
The band – who do not cite Jewish singer-songwriter Bob Dylan as a musical influence – is also known for leading “f*** the government” chants at gigs and regularly taking pops at politicians and public figures.
Lyrics include: “let’s go dig up Maggie’s grave and ask her where that milk went” – in reference to ex-PM Margaret Thatcher’s decision to end free school milk for kids over seven back in 1971.
The band has also cited the cost of living crisis and escalating London rent prices, including in track GYAG with the words: “Landlord just raised your rent, better get yourself a gun.”
Threatening fans
At times the band’s vitriol has spilled over during performances with fans becoming the target.
In 2021 gig-goer Sarah Corbett claimed she was verbally abused by Pascal and feared retribution in a petty row over an ice cube.
She told the Norwich Evening News: “We were all having fun on the dance floor. I’d put an ice cube down my friend’s top for a laugh.
“Another girl then threw it at her friend, but it missed and landed at his feet. At that point he stopped the gig and demanded to know who had thrown it.”
Sarah took the flack for the incident and Pascal, who was wielding a baseball bat, lashed out at her and later refused to apologise.
“He started abusing me through the microphone,” she recalled. “As I tried to leave, one of his fans tried to grab me by the throat.”
Onlooker Mark Evans backed-up her claims, calling it a “horrible, bizarre rant… all over an ice cube” that led him to conclude the musician’s “credibility has gone”.
[Pascal] started abusing me through the microphone… As I tried to leave, one of his fans tried to grab me by the throat
Sarah Corbett, former fan
Pascal previously threatened to beat up a heckler at a Manchester gig in an expletive-laden rant, with a clip recently re-posted on X.
In it the singer yelled: “I’d have you on your arse in no time you f***ing t**t.
“But I tell you what buy a ticket to the show at The Ritz and I’ll f***ing meet you outside side and punch you outside you d***head.”
The band has also channelled frustration toward other musicians for not jumping on their activist bandwagon – particularly when it comes to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Pascal told NME in 2023: “It’s a cowardly f***ing thing. So f*** IDLES, f*** Sleaford Mods.
“And f*** every single one of those f***ing apolitical bands that don’t want to f***ing speak up when there’s something a little bit iffy, a little bit touchy, a little bit sensitive [because they have] got a f***ing bulls*** album to sell.
“F*** that. We can’t f***ing respect that at all. F*** them.”
But their recent Glastonbury stunt could prove a step too far.
US website The Daily Caller reported that Donald Trump’s administration is now looking into visas obtained by Bob Vylan for a 16-date tour of North America.
“The US government will not issue visas to any foreigner who supports terrorists,” a senior State Department official said, suggesting it could be revoked.
Glastonbury Festival organisers have also distanced themselves from the band, insisting the event was “no place… for antisemitism, hate speech or incitement to violence”.
But Bob Vylan remains unapologetic; today Pascal shared footage regarding the Palestine conflict and called for more action, claiming it is “incredibly important” to inspire future generations of activists in spite of the “suffocation of adult life”.
“Let them see us marching in the streets, campaigning on ground level, organising online and shouting about it on any and every stage that we are offered,” he wrote.
Glastonbury backlashes
Glastonbury Festival has been going for 54 trailblazing years - but at times it has been a stormy ride Here, we look at the biggest backlashes to hit the iconic music event.
The Smiths (1984): One of the first bands to divide the early Glastonbury purists were Manchester indie stars The Smiths. The band’s set even sparked a full scale stage invasion as they introduced the crowd to their guitar-driven, post-punk romanticism music. Guitarist Johnny Marr described their usual fanbase as “cup final supporters”, adding: “Eventually, I did manage to instigate a stage invasion, which raised a few eyebrows. One fan was trying to climb on stage, I helped pull him up, and then a few more people followed, and all of a sudden we’d managed to turn it into a Smiths gig.”
The Fence (2002): It wasn’t a band or musician that sparked controversy in 2002… it was a fence. Organiser Michael Eavis came under fire when he organised the erection of a £1million fence around the site. The ring of steel was brought in to protect ticket holders and those who might inadvertently endanger themselves by breaking in. Diehard Glasto fans, however, felt it was at odds with the event’s hippy ethos of peace and love. Eavis and co refused to back down, though, and the fence remains in place today.
JAY-Z (2008): Despite its long history, Glastonbury had never welcomed a rapper for a headline set – until 2008. Jay-Z’s top bill booking was met with a flurry of digs, including some from Oasis’s Noel Gallagher, who claimed hip hop had no place at the festival. In a perfect clap-back, Jay-Z walked out to a version of Wonderwall before launching into his powerful hit 99 problems. Seven years later, his pal Kanye West followed in his Glastonbury footsteps and topped the bill.
Metallica (2014): Thrash metal rockers Metallica were met with raised eyebrows when they were announced as Glastonbury headliners. Some critics claimed they lacked mainstream appeal, while others felt they were past their prime. However, frontman James Hetfield managed to quickly win the crowd round thanks to his good humour and polite manners.
Adele (2016): Although Adele wowed both festival goers and music fans at home with her headliner set, the British songstress did cause a stir by turning the air blue. She warned the crowd about her “potty mouth” but not everyone was impressed with with the 30 plus expletives she dropped on the stage during her headline set, which aired on the BBC.
you’ve been through so much my darling daughter, but you’re the most precious little girl any mummy could wish for. 
” 
