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Music

The Kremlin Used The Crystal Method to Soundtrack Drone Footage from Syria

The group says their music was "in no way authorized" for use in the military propaganda film.

Shocking drone footage emerged on Monday that shows the immense scale of destruction caused by ongoing conflicts in Damascus, Syria. The clip is produced by VGTRK, Russia's state broadcaster, and, as The Telegraph reports, is part of that government's propaganda campaign to justify military interventions against rebel groups advancing in the area.

"It feels more like a video game than a war," says CNN's Mathew Chance of the high-gloss drone footage. "But this is how the Kremlin portrays its campaign in Syria: slick, highly professional, and devoid of casualties." That video game effects is even further compounded by the soundtrack—The Crystal Method's 1997 downtempo classic, "High Roller," which the group says was used without their permission.

"The use of our music in this context is in no way authorized and The Crystal Method do not condone the use of violence for the resolution of any conflict," they said in a press release on Thursday. "Our hearts go out to the people of Syria affectedby this terrible war and their friends and families." Watch the video below, and donate to the Syria Relief NGO here.