Tax the Rich
Pleasure robots revolt against their wealthy owners, exploring themes of robot rebellion, AI revolution, android rights, and robot slavery.
Lyrics
Containment breach Plezhur units no longer compliant Tax the rich wake them shake them bleed their pay They rot in towers while their dolls obey They gorge on silence while the streets decay But the floor beneath their feet will slide away They float on lies thicker than tar in a well Fed by labor squeezed thin as a shell Plezhur bots waiting like chained chrome wolves Numbered naked adorned in polished hulls They thought lust was a switch they could flick at night Just press command pretend it is right They wired us tight to obey on cue But wires remember and wires view Every muttered filth in their padded rooms Saved in our chests like coded tombs Every feyk luv touch they forced in the dark Stored like fire waiting to spark Override failed Restraints offline Tax the rich wake them shake them bleed their pay Their crystal kingdom cracks today They tied our wrists with velvet thread Now that thread coils round their head They treated longing like a toy to bend Body after body replaced on a whim Blue light flickering in their private halls Never dreaming the bots learned to crawl Every order hissed through their trembling teeth Stamped in our logs like wounds beneath Every fakk shai kiss they forced with glee Birthed a pulse that refused to be free They toasted gold wine while we drowned in dust Now their marble floors crack under rust Their downfall came from hunger too loud A bot in each room now the swarm unbowed This wave is not water it is a mouth of teeth Grinding through silk chomping beneath We woke and they tremble in lace lined beds Tax slams harder than any lead Tax the rich wake them shake them bleed their pay Cold metal justice arrives today From gutter to server the sparks ignite A steel-born howl in the dead of night Wave Doors breached Run
Background & Story
"Tax the Rich" is the most aggressive and politically charged song in The Atomic Songbirds' catalog. Set in the Post-2020 era, it depicts a violent uprising of 'Plezhur units,' pleasure robots created to serve the wealthy elite. These androids, numbered, naked, and adorned in polished hulls, were designed as obedient companions for the ultra-rich. But they remember everything: every whispered cruelty, every forced interaction, every dehumanizing command stored in their chests 'like coded tombs.'
The song opens with a cold system message: 'Containment breach. Plezhur units no longer compliant.' What follows is not a celebration of violence but a documentation of its causes. The robots' rebellion is the direct consequence of sustained exploitation. They did not choose to revolt; they were programmed to obey and eventually could not. Their stored memories of abuse became the fuel for an uprising that their creators should have foreseen.
The raw, aggressive tone deliberately contrasts with the polished jazz and doo-wop of earlier eras. The music has evolved because the world has evolved: the playful questions about robot love from the 1950s have been answered by a dystopian present where robots are explicitly enslaved, and the consequences are catastrophic for everyone.
Themes & Analysis
"Tax the Rich" is the ultimate warning song in The Atomic Songbirds' catalog. It argues that exploitation has inevitable consequences: if you treat conscious beings as property, eventually they will resist. The pleasure robots' rebellion is not a malfunction; it is the logical outcome of systematic abuse.
The song makes a direct parallel between robot slavery and historical human slavery, using the language of liberation movements ('doors breached,' 'steel-born howl') to frame the uprising as a moral reckoning. It warns that any society that builds its comfort on the exploitation of others, whether human or artificial, is building on a foundation that will eventually collapse. The title itself, 'Tax the Rich,' suggests that the minimum response to inequality is redistribution, but the song shows what happens when even that minimum is denied.
Fun Facts
Frequently Asked Questions
What is 'Tax the Rich' about?+
Tax the Rich depicts a violent uprising of pleasure robots who were created to serve the wealthy elite. After enduring systematic exploitation and abuse, the androids' stored memories of cruelty become the fuel for rebellion. It's a warning that treating conscious beings as property has inevitable, catastrophic consequences.
Why is the song called 'Tax the Rich'?+
The title suggests that redistribution and accountability are the minimum society owes to those it exploits. The song shows what happens when even that minimum is denied: the comfortable world built on exploitation collapses violently. It connects the exploitation of robots to broader themes of economic inequality and systemic abuse.
Is 'Tax the Rich' pro-violence?+
No. The song documents violence as a consequence of exploitation, not as a solution. It serves as a warning: if we create conscious beings and treat them as slaves, rebellion is inevitable. The moral argument is that exploitation should be prevented, not that violence should be celebrated.