Indie Rock Organization The Long Afternoon Applauds, Decries Federal Disaster Distress Hotline 1-800-985-5990

YOURTOWNISNEXT, U.S.A. – In response to the most recent mass shooting incident in the U.S., cryptic indie rock organization The Long Afternoon is simultaneously applauding and decrying the federal government’s Disaster Distress Helpline service.

The Disaster Distress Helpline 1-800-985-5990 can provide immediate counseling to anyone who needs help to deal with the effects of tragic shootings. A service of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), it is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Having eschewed conventional rock and roll careerism and traditional notions of success, The Long Afternoon’s ultimate aims remain shrouded, but they responded to recent events in their capacity as longtime opponents of needless misery. The Long Afternoon lauded the helpline for providing critical assistance following mass shootings, but expressed dismay at the collective lack of will to even attempt to prevent such incidents from occurring in the U.S.

“With just a phone call, people can get the help they need to cope with this inconceivable trauma,” said Ginger M. Armalade, The Long Afternoon’s spokesperson and associate policy analyst. “Great—but why is there a nearly incessant need for it? What kind of society lets this happen over and over, without even trying to stop it?”[tweetshare tweet=”What kind of society lets this happen over and over, without even trying to stop it?” username=”longafternoon”]

Asked for recommendations about how concerned citizens and leaders should approach the complicated issue, Armalade said, “Change is hard. Decisions are hard. But to quote a visionary philosopher of yore, if you choose not to decide you still have made a choice. Those who are on the fence about whether or not they should do something might consider listening to The Long Afternoon’s song ‘Well I Wish You Would’ for inspiration. We further suggest they crank it up and think about the song’s advocacy of confronting tough choices and rejecting inaction.”

The Disaster Distress Helpline immediately connects callers to trained and caring professionals from the closest crisis counseling center in the nationwide network of centers.  The Helpline staff will provide confidential counseling, referrals and other needed support services. In just the past 18 months, the Disaster Distress Helpline has issued press releases offering assistance to people affected by shootings in:

“When disaster strikes, people react with increased anxiety, worry and anger. With community and family support, most of us bounce back.  Some may need extra assistance to cope with unfolding events and uncertainties,” said Dr. Elinore McCance-Katz, Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use. “People seeking emotional help in the aftermath of a disaster can now call 1-800-985-5990 or text TalkWithUs to 66746 and begin the process of recovery.”

The Disaster Distress Helpline is a national hotline dedicated to providing disaster crisis counseling.  The toll-free Helpline is confidential and multilingual and available for those who are experiencing psychological distress as a result of mass violence or any other tragedy affecting America’s communities. The helpline can also be accessed at http://disasterdistress.samhsa.gov/

“The Long Afternoon supports the provision of this service to anyone dealing with the psychological trauma inflicted by incidents of mass violence,” Armalade said. “But when will we finally deal with the issues that enable these incidents?”

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ABOUT THE LONG AFTERNOON

Reclusive Pennsylvania-based indie rock pioneers The Long Afternoon formed in Pittsburgh in 1985 and consolidated in State College in 1987. The organization has pursued a strategy of deliberate obscurity, opting not to participate in conventional rock and roll career-building activities and eschewing traditional notions of success entirely, leaving their ultimate ambitions and intent unknown to any but the group’s inner circle.

The Long Afternoon creates complex sinusoidal plane waves of carefully selected and configured frequencies, transmitted primarily but not exclusively via pulse code modulation. The organization facilitates and enhances cognitive separation and spatial location in ways that foster a pleasurable and stimulating yet challenging environment for clients, constituents, and consumers, as well as the group’s individual contributors.

The organization’s first recorded statement, the album entitled The Luxury Problem, came out in 2006 to enthusiastic reviews. Their second album, Signifying Nothing, arrived in 2009 and was named one of the 10 best indie albums of the year by A Future in Noise. The group’s third album, 2011’s An Index of Maladjustmentscontained “The Chameleonaires,” a single that, despite its ambiguity about wealth and class, was adopted as an anthem by Wall Street protestors. In keeping with their iconoclastic approach, The Long Afternoon neither encouraged nor discouraged this use of their statement. The organization’s fourth album, Regression, arrived in August 2016 and featured the single “Autoresponder,” an attack on institutionally endorsed and enforced thoughtlessness.

The Long Afternoon continues to issue recorded statements and proffer live demonstrations as situations demand.

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