Working tirelessly for a decade now, the artist known as grandson has come a long way. The work of Songwriter Jordan Edward Benjamin, under the name grandson he had his first spark of success in 2016 with the single “Bury Me Face Down,” but it was not until 2017’s “Blood // Water” where he would start to really make an impact. A clever mix of Hip Hop, Electronic, Rock, and even Metal, “Blood // Water” was a striking track that was a commentary on society and our culture at hand.
A perfect launching point for further success, several more singles followed, as well as EPs, but it was not until 2020 where we would finally see grandson put out his debut record, Death of an Optimist. An exceptional album which blends various sounds, to follow would be some new music over the last couple of years, but now in 2023 grandson positions himself for broader praise with his sophomore album I Love You, I’m Trying.
An album preceded by two well-written singles, “Eulogy” and “Drones,” the writing was on the wall that grandson was not stepping away from being an artist who engages you with his lyrical content. As alluded to, he is an artist who is a deep thinker, does not necessarily believe everything he sees, and makes intuitive observations well beyond his years. This is evident with “Eulogy,” a track which pokes holes in the modern way of life that leads us to believe that social media is the pinnacle of our existence. This is while “Drones” expresses the anxiety of, again, the fragmentation of what we call modern life.
These two singles laid out, I Love You, I’m Trying emerged as a complete set of music to consume on May 5th through Fueled by Ramen for streaming; with the CD release available shortly thereafter, and a vinyl edition available as of January 19, 2024. Consisting of twelve tracks, the new invention of grandson shows maturity musically, all well remaining consistently to stay true to himself. For those wondering exactly what that is, it is to be an individual who sees the world for what it is, does not put on rose colored glasses, and truthfully, is not too optimistic about the future. You could say this type of negativity is very prevalent in modern music, but what makes this record different is that grandson actually gives well-developed ideas for his views.
That said, his lyrics are honest, not sugar coated, and are the sign of someone who is idealistic, but not opposed to a logical approach to life. This is pronounced further on songs like the single “Something To Hide,” but also the heartfelt title-track where he confesses he will not let shallow aspects of life destroy what is real. This is while other songs such as “When the Bombs Goes” cuts through all the BS and “Enough” gives you a straight stream of consciousness of an individual not afraid to be self aware.
In all, there is a tremendous amount of depth within each of the songs that make up I Love You, I’m Trying… so much so it would be redundant to break down each of them. Putting it simply, grandson is a very talented, intelligent artist with a bright future ahead of him. Bringing you a hybrid of sounds that can please a Rock, Pop, and Hip Hop fan equally, Cryptic Rock gives I Love You, I’m Trying 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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