Today I want to share with you a song that has stuck with me for a couple decades and has been a source of catharsis for shaking off that existential dread. I’m talking about Piebald’s 2002 single American Hearts. (video)

[Hook]
HEY! You're part of it
YEAH! You're part of it
HEY! You're part of it
YEAH! You're part of it

[Verse 1]
I walk the streets of a Carolina
Watching people pushing shopping carts
And there's a guy above me
And he's washing windows
Making ten bucks a pop
And he says to me...

[Hook]
HEY! You're part of it
YEAH! You're part of it
HEY! You're part of it
YEAH! You're part of it

[Verse 2]
And I say, "Sir, well have you heard that this country is unequal still?"
History continues itself
Continues itself
History continues itself
And I did not create the rules

From all I've heard
And all I've seen
This place has broken
My American heart
From all I've heard
And all I've seen
This place has broken
My American heart

[Hook]
HEY! You're part of it
YEAH! You're part of it
HEY! You're part of it
YEAH! You're part of it

From the first snap of the snare to the final piano chord the song grips you for the whole ride. The staccato bass line powers the song and surrounds itself in an envelope of noise from the dual guitars and a cacophony of drum hits. The lyrics and chord progressions are simple but together they produce something bigger. The song only has two major parts, but the way they drop instruments in and out it feels like four. And best of all, it makes you want to punch a hole in the sky.

Every so often – out of nowhere in the middle of my day when I’m feeling frustrated by a situation beyond my control – I’ll shout to myself “HEY! You’re part of it” as a little mantra to remind myself that, yes, I’m a participant in the democratic capitalist American experiment. I’m a participant in the prosperous parts as well as the unjust parts. I’m part of it. And due to America’s broad empire-like influence, you’re probably part of it or impacted by it too. And it breaks your heart at times.