grandson - Death Of An Optimist

grandson’s debut album is, according to its creator, “both an origin story and an obituary”. That’s not where the juxtapositions end, either. A record that broods in bright strokes, it often manages to combine nervous, twitching energy and panoramic, open horizons within the same song. A genre-shifting beast, darkness and light sit side by side.

From the fizzing, anxiety-ridden alt-pop of ‘In Over My Head’ to the sharp-edged, hard-hitting ‘Identity’, there’s no territory grandson deems off-limits. ‘Dirty’ swaggers with snotty, brat pack confidence, while ‘We Did It!!’ stomps with a terminal velocity that earns both its exclamation points.

Two distinct characters wrapped in one perfect package, ‘Death of an Optimist’ is a sweet and sour double hit that’s sure to hit the mark.