2017 was a wild ride for the USA, and these constant news stories, especially under Trump, donโt look to be stopping anytime soon in 2018. Nobody has been feeling as much confusion as Jeff Rosenstock, as demonstrated in his latest LP, POST-.
Right out of the gate, Rosenstock establishes this as a revolutionary album with the song USA, after a brief 10 second intro track. As of late Iโve found many politically fueled albums to be poorly executed, most just trying to support a political party or point of view. However, this is not to say there hasnโt been any good music to come out of Trumpโs presidency, as Jeff Rosenstock manages to pull it off with POST-. His trademark low-fi vocals and guitars fit very well with feel of the album, as he takes an aggressive tone in much of the tracklist.
In the song “Yr Throat”, he encourages speaking up for what you believe in, making the listener ask themselves the same question when he repeatedly states, โWhatโs the point of having a voice when it gets stuck inside your throat?โ This call to action is reflected in much of the album, and he does it well. Jeff still manages to bring his catchy lyrics into his sound, and puts a lot of thought into his lyrics. In the songs “All This Useless Energy” and “Powerlessness”, he speaks on situations where he has felt that he has no control over whatโs happening in his life. He struggles with not being able to solve his own problems in his head, let alone help those the world is facing. Rosenstock goes into personal territory in this album, sometimes even partly blaming himself for not speaking up, or doing more to change the course of whatโs going on around him.
Although the album is not explicitly political, I find some of my favorite songs during Trumpโs presidency in POST-. Rosenstock doesnโt have an agenda heโs trying to create on this record, he just speaks from experience of being an adult in the 21st century. He doesnโt specifically state Trumpโs name in any point of the album, and this was definitely done on purpose, ensuring that it doesnโt exclude listeners, whether theyโre for or against him. No matter where you land on the political spectrum, Iโd recommend giving this album a listen.
There will always be problems in this country, and POST– perfectly relates how many feel during times of confusion, like those we live in today.
