Not since Rancid signed with Warner Brothers Records in 2003 has the punk community been as up in arms as they were when Anti-Flag signed to RCA last year. It’s always a sore subject when a punk-rock sweetheart band “sells out” and signs with a major record company.

Many declared that A-F’s move to RCA marked the end of A-F’s relevancy to punk rock. On March 21, the naysayers were silenced and A-F reasserted their dominance in modern punk music. On March 21, A-F dropped their finest album to date: For Blood and Empire.

After a handful of albums, A-F has amassed quite a loyal following. While their first few albums contained some classic songs (“Die for Your Government,” “Captain Anarchy,” etc.), they were marred by the fact that the politics that fueled EVERY song were too immature and unfocused. To be honest, early A-F sounded like an angry, ignorant high school band.

On March 19, 2003, when the United States invaded Iraq, A-F got focused and started making solid music. The absurdity of the U.S. invasion gave A-F a specific target for their music. They finally picked one battle on which to focus, instead of trying to tackle every issue under the sun. That year, the band released The Terror State and finally found its groove. The Terror State was filled with 13 heartfelt songs of outrage against the United States government, war and corporate domination.

For Blood and Empire finds A-F upping the ante. A lot of bands talk big political talk and maybe submit a track for a crappy charity compilation. Not A-F.

These Pittsburgh punks practice what they preach, helping to organize rallies and marches as well as working with Congressman Jim McDermott (D-WA) on the Depleted Uranium Bill and working to overturn parts of the No Child Left Behind Act that forces schools to hand over student information to the government for military recruitment purposes. These boys are up to their ears in positive dissent, and they love every minute of it. They also love singing about it.

The Terror State introduced A-F’s newfound love of pop music, but For Blood and Empire finds them honing their pop craftsmanship without compromising their street-punk roots. The first single off Empire is “The Press Corpse,” a head-bobbing attack on mainstream media. The catch chorus is sung with such intensity that it is hard to realize how catchy it actually is until you find it stuck in your head all day.

The next track, “?migr?,” incorporates a line from Martin Niemoller’s famous anti-Nazi poem: “First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out. Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out. Next they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out. And then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me.” The 60-year-old words of warning over the blazing A-F guitar make for a chilling yet rousing mosh anthem.

Other highlights on the Blood Empire include “The Project for a New American Century” and “One Trillion Dollars,” which show signs that the A-F boys have been listening to their former label-mates Against Me! Like Against Me!, A-F have started to incorporate protest-folk (a la Billy Bragg) with raw punk-rock. Clappy break-downs and angry shout-alongs pepper the album. “One Trillion Dollars” is a folksy camp-fire sing-along that lightheartedly laments the $1 trillion that the United States spent on weapons in 2004 alone. It is the biggest departure on the album, and the biggest success.

If you are a fan of pop-tinted street-punk like the Clash and Bouncing Souls, and you have a flare for politics (progressive, mind you), then For Blood and Empire is a no-brainer. Plus, if you really dig their politics, the liner notes come with essays that complement each song, each written by reputable sources. Check this out.