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Aug 15, 2012 By Michele Yamamoto

When will they learn?

According to a press release from Silversun Pickups’ publicist, the band has issued a cease and desist to the Romney campaign for using their song “Panic Switch” at various stops on the campaign trail without permission from the band nor its representatives. Yet another reason to bring #RomneyFail back in to trending.

Lead singer and guitarist Brian Aubert commented, “We don’t like people going behind our backs, using our music without asking, and we don’t like the Romney campaign.”

We can all appreciate the power of music to rally a crowd, but with great power comes great responsibility, and a number of musicians have shown they take this responsibility seriously by pulling the plug on use of their songs (not Kid Rock, of course, but who cares).

Here’s the full release:

SILVERSUN PICKUPS ISSUE CEASE AND DESIST TO ROMNEY CAMPAIGN FOR ILLEGAL USE OF THEIR SONG “PANIC SWITCH”

Seems as if the GOP is once again whimsically ignoring our great nation’s laws to do whatever it wants to do, and shooting itself in the foot in the process. Without any regard for copyright or intellectual property laws, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has, without permission, begun to use Silversun Pickups’ 2009 smash “Panic Switch” at campaign stops across the country. Neither the band nor its representatives were contacted to gain permission for the use of the song and the band has no intention of endorsing the Romney campaign. The band’s attorney issued a cease and desist today. “We don’t like people going behind our backs, using our music without asking, and we don’t like the Romney campaign,” said Silversun Pickups lead singer/guitarist Brian Aubert. “We’re nice, approachable people. We won’t bite. Unless you’re Mitt Romney! We were very close to just letting this go because the irony was too good. While he is inadvertently playing a song that describes his whole campaign, we doubt that ‘Panic Switch’ really sends the message he intends.”