New Music: Star Matriarch – Mỹ Lai to Rafah

Tacoma-based Star Matriarch speaks truth to power on Mỹ Lai to Rafah from her 2025 re-released album, Red Ship.

The music of Star Matriarch is a reflection of her lived experiences as a woman, a mother, as an artist, and as a survivor of colonisation. The track has a riot grrrl feel to the arrangement, sparse and urgent, the dark chime of the guitar reminiscent of the inglorious noise of war.

Lyrically the song looks not just at the Hollywood narrative created by men to excuse the actions but also sees Star Matriarch – multidisciplinary artist Carol Bui – provide a living testimony for the innocent and the survivors.

A main focus of the track is the Mỹ Lai massacre in March 1968, the recent anniversary of which carries a personal resonance for Bui, as once again men bring war to the world and call it peace. She states, “In the context of the war with Iran, US imperialism, and the experience of someone in the diaspora following war, it is all too timely.”

Red Ship is available on digital and vinyl formats on Bandcamp. You can also hear the album on Spotify – for other listening options and all the latest news from Star Matriarch, including live dates, head to Instagram.