Song of the Day: Worriers - They/Them/Theirs

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on the Midday Show with Cheryl Waters, is “They/Them/Theirs” by Brooklyn band Worriers from their new full-length album, Imaginary Life, out now on Don Giovanni Records.

Worriers - They/Them/Theirs (MP3)

It doesn’t take much digging to find a social and political context for Worriers fantastic single, “They/Them/Theirs”. The trio of gender-neutral pronouns that make up the name of the punishingly catchy punk track have become largely emblematic of a transgender movement that has grown leaps and bounds in public awareness over the last handful of years. In fact, one of the most public figures in that movement is the producer for Worriers’ Imaginarly Life, Laura Jane Grace, who also fronts the influential punk outfit, Against Me!.

That could make for a lot of pressure, especially in taking on the weight of topics that possess far-reaching implications and high personal stakes—a fact that Lauren Denitizio readily acknowledges in her lyrics when lamenting, “So many questions get asked/So many times I don’t have the energy I’d like to correct and react.” Ironically, it’s in that exact type of vulnerably wistful moment that “They/Them/Theirs” finds air to breath. Like so many powerful artists’ before them, Worriers find a beautiful way to transform the political into the personal. Of course, none of that epic transendence is possible without all the thrashing guitars licks, throbbing bass lines, and exploding drums that combine in an equal parts destructive and tranquil synchronicity. True to the lyrics’ theme, “They, Them, Theirs” is a song that thrives outside of definitions, sailing on the soars of its own awesome wind.

Catch Worriers’ as they tour through Seattle with a stop at the Vera Project on November 9th, and in the meanwhile, keep up with the dance ready punk artists by checking out their website and facebook. Still want more? Basque in the glory of amazing sunglasses and forlorn romance with Worrier’s video for “Chasing” below: