Seriously, who has time for all of this political bullshit? Living in America is hard. (I’m sure it’s hard where you are, too, but this is my frame of reference so work with me here.) School, work, family–mostly work. The majority of us work for employers who think of as disposable meat if they think of us at all. They grind us down until there’s nothing left, and then they “downsize” us so that we can “seek other opportunities.” Sometimes we go back to school to train for this unexpected next career, which is incredibly stressful if we’re trying to support a family, go to school, and get the money flowing in again. Eventually we catch on with another employer who takes their turn grinding us down to nubs.

If we’re lucky we get a couple of years to ourselves before we die, but the number of people working all the way to the grave is on the uptick. Welcome, my son, welcome to the machine.

And in those few moments we get each day when we’re not being treated like cogs in a giant machine, we bicker about politics as if that is the cause of our woes. Some argue that’s how The Man keeps you compliant–sort of a diversionary tactic to make you think that somebody else (anybody else) is grinding you down. Regardless of whether that’s true, the end result is the same: worn out minds, bodies, and spirits; stress; anxiety; 40-50-60 years of noses to the grindstones. It’s exhausting.

Anyway, songs for the grind:

“Grind,” Alice In Chains.

“Grinding Halt,” The Cure.

“Bump and Grind,” David Lee Roth.

“Grinder,” Judas Priest.

“(Don’t Let ‘Em) Grind Ya Down,” Motorhead.

“Grindhouse (A Go-Go),” White Zombie.

“Whine and Grind,” English Beat.

“Acrobat,” U2.

There you have it–eight songs for whatever it is that cuts you up and spits you out. What did I miss? I’m listening.