Was looking at Meat Beat Manifesto lyrics today and came across the lyrics to an old fav of mine. Even though the song is from the 90s, it's statments hold true.

"...This is a global warning
Man made and rectified
Disciplined for mass consumption
My assumption of the way things run
You're looking down the end of a gun
Misinformation of the things that we have done
Concentration of liberation
Ignorance is the curse of the nation
Almost everywhere, a state of disrepair
Stunned at the contradictions on show
Symptoms analysed, never recognised
As the root of the problem
Once again it's time to let go
You're letting your feelings show
Positive thinking to mass extinction
Maximise, capitalise, realise
Do your dreams replay the past?
If not, what do your dreams forecast?
Take the opportunity to access the structure
Think with an open mind
Lead to a fresh dimension of culture
Communicate, it's never too late, just realise
This is the cause in effect..."

That's from the song, "Edge of No Control (part 1)" from the album Satyricon.

Anyone else know of songs or bands with good clever political lyrics??

Yes, actually I happen to know a few songs with a message which is not necessary love... ;)

This one is from one of my favourite bands, NEW MODEL ARMY.
The band around fronter Justin Sullivan is from the UK, and they play some kind of (sometimes very sharp political) punkrock with a folky edge.

This song is simply titled 'Ballad' from their ´86 release "The Ghost Of Cain".

When they look back at us and they
write down their history
What will they say about our genereation?
We´re the ones who know everything
still we did nothing
Harvested everything, planted nothing

Well we live pretty well in the wake of the goldrush
Floating in comfort on waves of our apathy
Quietly knawing away at Her body
Until we mortgage the future, bury our children

Storehouses full with the fruits we´ve been given
We send off the scragends to suckle the starving
But still we can´t feed this strange hunger inside
Greedy, restless and unsatisfied

I was never much much one for the great "big bang" theory
Going out in a blaze of suicidal glory
Not foolish and brave, these leaders of ours
Just stupid and petty, unworthy of power...

Just a little leak here and a small error there
Another square mile poisoned forever
A series of sad and pathetic little fizzles
And out goes the lights, never to return

The affair is over, the passion is dead
She stares at us now with ice in Her eyes
But we turn away from these bitter reproaches
And take up distractions to forget what we´re doing

Well I stand on these hills and I watch Her at night
A thousand square miles, a million orange lights
Wounded and scarred, She lies silent in pain
Raped and betrayed in the cold acid rain
And I wish and I wish
We could start over again
Yes I wish and I wish
We could win back Her love once again...

Wave...good one. I have a few New Model Army albums myself. ;)

Paul Hardcastle's 19 contains discussions of the Vietnam War.

Not the right genre for this topic but Billy Bragg was one of my fave politico-lyricists. Seldom agree with him really but got to love the way he can put his thoughts into words.

"It may have been Camelot for Jack and Jacqueline
On the Che Guevara highway filling up with gasoline.
Fidel Castro's brother spies a rich lady who's crying
Over luxury's disappointment so he walks over and he's tryin'
To sympathize with her but he thinks that he should warn her
That the third world is just around the corner"

this isn't exactly rave, either.

but how about

"we rally around the family
with a pocket full of shells.."