INTERVIEW: Grandson plays the rage card
The artist who calls himself Grandson is only 24 years old – and he’s already talking about the legacy he’s going to leave behind.
As if it weren’t depressing enough to hear such fatalist talk from a millennial, listen to his music.
Jordan Benjamin has already made a huge impact with his hit song Blood//Water. We haven’t heard anything so dark, angry and critical of the establishment since Rage Against the Machine. The song skewers the awful greedy people who value themselves above others – Namely He Whom Shall Not Be Named. The singer vents literal rage against his targets in a genre-busting stew of strident sonic goodness. It’s ugly, it’s challenging, it’s fresh. Radio still discovers great songs like this, once in a while.
There are more tunes like it where that came from. You can hear them when Grandson plays an afternoon set at SONIC Field Day on Sept. 8. Moreover, he assures us that his debut EP A Modern Tragedy: Vol. 1 will have sequels – because modern tragedy is such a rich topic. The titles of Grandson songs alone speak volumes: Despicable, Bury Me Face Down, Overdose. One that hits you in the heart is Thoughts and Prayers, released as a single after the Parkland School massacre. The children’s choir is a chilling touch. “No thoughts, no prayers can bring back what’s no longer there,” he sings grimly. Grandson recently played at “March for Our Lives” in Los Angeles, and donated all proceeds of special Thoughts and Prayers merch to charity.
In a recent phone interview, Grandson speaks like he’s on a mission.
“I’m willing to take a stand, and say what it means when you’re a fan of my music: that you believe in transparency and accountability in government, that you believe in the inherent value of every human life, and you believe in the rights of disenfranchised communities across the world. It’s so much deeper than a guitar riff. It’s a shared belief in the same vision in what society could be. So I want to find new ways for myself and others and take that belief as far as it can go.”
Grandson speaks of being an alternative to the “cultural Big Macs we’re force-feeding kids,” and that he’s offering real messages that encourage political engagement, which could have a positive effect on society. One fears that a professional protest songwriter will enter the “Bono Zone,” where they become convinced that their rock ‘n’ roll is indeed saving the world, and thus earn the scorn of cynical masses. On the other hand, maybe music does help – a little at a time. Some great songs can be rallying cries.
Change, Grandson says, “isn’t a speed boat. It’s a cruise ship. There’s weight. It’s slow to turn, and if you can change things even just one degree think how different your course will be. I try to remember that the fruition of the work I’m trying to do may not be felt tomorrow, or in my lifetime, but hopefully can inspire young people, and empower them to feel like they have a voice that can make change, and that they can hopefully inspire the next generation after them.”
Grandson says he grew up the youngest in a household of music freaks. He was exposed to a blur of influences, some on the heavy sde: bands like the aforementioned Rage Against the Machine, or System of a Down, or Linkin Park, and others he says did a lot to encourage kids to open up about mental health issues, and to become politically engaged. That’s the “legacy” Grandson says he wants to follow – and he can already see the effect he’s having on his fans.
“It’s a pretty breathtaking thing to watch what started as just my stoned, frustrated poems turn into this real point of connection,” he says. “It really excites me, and it makes me work harder.”
Asked if he thinks Trump (named after all) has spurred unprecedented political activism in young people, Grandson says, “We have to acknowledge that if we had this level of civic engagement and outrage through the political process, maybe we wouldn’t have this reality star as the President of the United States. And frankly if we’re just going to tweet about it, and express moral outrage, that’s all we’re going to do. The reality is that we have huge fall coming up, and there’s a lot of work to be done. Now is not the time to pat ourselves on the back. Now is the time to stay angry and get involved.”
It should be pointed out that Grandson was born American. He grew up in Toronto, got dual citizenship and now lives in Los Angeles.
He says, “If shit gets too real, I’m heading back home.”
