The latest single from Canadian-American rock artist grandson takes fans back to the political angst they’ve come to know and love from the artist. "Dirty," released September 22, 2020 is a fueled, upbeat track that demands to be heard. It comes with the news that grandson's debut studio album, Death of an Optimist, will be released on December 4th, 2020. The album consists of 12 tracks.
Tracklist:
1. ‘Death of an Optimist //Intro’
2. ‘In Over My Head’
3. ‘Identity’
4. ‘Left Behind’
5. ‘Dirty’
6. ‘The Ballad of G and X // Interlude’
7. ‘We Did It’
8. ‘WW3’
9. ‘Riptide’
10. ‘Pain Shopping’
11. ‘Drop Dead’
12. ‘Welcome to Paradise//Outro’
“Is it time to lead or is it time to die / Time to raise hell or walk on by?” These first lines in "Dirty" really spark important questions when looking at our current political climate. If you know grandson and his stance when it comes to politics, you already know the answers to those. But when you hear the song, having these kinds of grand propositions followed so quickly by a kind of dismal option really pushes you to opt for the side of making a change instead of just standing idly by while things are happening around you.
We’re at a pinnacle time in history where our voices all need to be heard. The election coming up in November for those of us in the United States is one of the most crucial we have seen in our lifetimes. I have rights on the line, I have friends with rights on the line, and I’m sure you do as well. This track is definitely above all else it seems, a call to action. Voter registrations are rapidly approaching in most states and ballots are going out. Please use your voice, get your hands dirty, and encourage those around you to do the same. grandson has a way of encouraging political activism that was unbeknownst to me until hearing the Modern Tragedy series, and "Dirty" brings me right back to that first time I felt compelled to get involved in political change via a song.
"Please use your voice, get your hands dirty, and encourage those around you to do the same."
The thing that I really love about this song is that while it can very easily be an anthem about our civic duty, this can also be a song to scream as you’re following your dreams. The second time I listened to this song through, I really paid attention to how the words resonated with me personally on a more intimate scale. “Do you love a sunset / aren’t you fed up yet / do you have enough love in your heart / to go and get your hands dirty,” are probably a few of the lines that stuck out to me most when considering how this song spoke to me directly. When I hear those lines I’m faced with this internal conflict of being fed up with the way my life has been going but not doing anything to change it. I have felt stuck in some kind of a rut, not able to find simple pleasures in the way the sky is painted in strokes of crimson and lilac when the sun sets, let alone with the impact I feel I’m having on myself or those around me. Do I have enough love in my heart to go and get my hands dirty? Do I care enough to do the hard work, the uncomfortable, dirty, messy, confusing things that it takes to get to the other side of mundane? There are so many small things I could do everyday to make progress toward where I want to be, but I’ve been afraid to get dirty along the way and actually do them.
There are so many times in life where we will continue to sit in our comfort even if we know it’s not the right thing to do, or what we’re supposed to do, simply out of fear of not knowing what will happen if we deviate from those ruts we're stuck in. Change is terrifying for almost everyone. A good friend of mine recently told me that nothing worth doing is easy, because if it was, everyone would do it and the world would be perfect. That statement, much like this song, reminded me that while it’s not easy to break from the mold you’ve cast for your life thus far, doing it will always be worth it. No matter how dirty you get in the process.
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