If you’re frustrated with American politics, you’re not alone, and grandson is putting a soundtrack to your feelings of rage. The artist, well-known for his blunt observations and critiques of capitalism, content consumption, broken social systems, and beyond, just announced his third album. INERTIA is set for release on September 5, and features his single “BRAINROT.”
The “BRAINROT” music video, starring Sophie Powers, is a dark satire touching on how the end of the world *feels like* it’s being livestreamed. His lyrics will punch you in the gut, including, “Watch the stars walk the red carpet/Watch the cops shoot the wrong girl in her own apartment/Become a slave to the free market/Where you pick up the gun or become the target.”
grandson shared, “2025 has brought a hyper acceleration of wealth and power concentration in the hands of the few, with the same tactics of distraction and manipulation keeping us focused on cultural and social division and misinformation to avoid accountability for their crimes against humanity.
BRAINROT is a song about how our overreliance on technology and social media is weaponized to stifle dissent and crush resistance.”
Read more: NOAHFINNCE and Pinkshift Criticize Download Fest’s Anti-Trans Policy
He continues, “I have tried to make music my whole life that has an underpinning of optimism and confidence about the future, but this new wave has brought darker and heavier themes and sounds to meet this moment in time. It is especially difficult to confront fascism and stand for something in a genre that overwhelmingly caters to apolitical, homogenous voices, where audiences are gatekept behind radio stations and festivals that want to ‘keep politics out of music’ in a genre built on disrupting the status quo- while ironically still playing bands from decades ago like System [Of A Down] and Rage [Against The Machine] who stood for something unapologetically.”
Read more: Cartel Announce Chroma 20 Year Anniversary Tour
grandson continues, “I have been moved by bands and artists who have been writing songs and using their platforms to stand for something- artists like KNEECAP, Macklemore, Viagra Boys, Kehlani,
IDLES, Bob Vylan, Fontaines DC, Jesse Welles, The Neighborhood Kids, Sam Fender, Vienna Vienna, and OGs that paved the way like Bruce Springsteen, Tom Morello, Rise Against, Refused, Run The Jewels-standing up against injustice, and providing social commentary, whether denouncing the atrocities committed in Gaza, standing against the aggressive proliferation of AI, the rise of fascism or any of the other overlapping disasters of our time.”
He concludes, “Listening to and sharing this work is a high honour, it means everything to have the support of this community as I return with the first solo grandson recordings in 2 years.”
grandson‘s forthcoming record isn’t just a song collection, it’s a rallying cry. He says there’s a “growing need for class solidarity that can be achieved by seeing that across any political spectrum, people stand to benefit from the consolidation of power in the hands of the many against the few.”
He continues, “So many people are fighting for different things. I believe that finding connection with one another, through music or otherwise, and making collective demands for a brighter, better future, can lead us to a more holistic way of living, thinking, and consuming. It all starts with a cathartic release of energy. Meet you in the pit.”
Stay tuned for more grandson musings and tracks, and pre-save your copy of INERTIA here.
