Destination Breakdown is the latest 7-inch from Dayton, Ohio band The 1984 Draft. Their previous releases have been a blend of later era Husker Du and The Lemonheads, they carry on that same style of punk influenced alternative rock here. They also mix in the type of introspection and spiritual self examination found on the solo work of David Bazan.

2020 has been a year that has offered a lot of musicians more downtime than they’ve likely had in decades. In a year filled with police violence, political upheaval, and a pandemic there has been plenty material for musicians to write about, The 1984 Draft was able to put out songs that address both of these issues. While external outrage has been seen in many songs written this year, that outrage has rarely been combined with introspection; that is what these songs do.

“Shame About Grace” is a look at the weight the politics of 2020 can have on familial relationships. With verses containing lines such as, “Back to school looks different, anger takes its ugly place. We will stay in our safe place. All your actions resonated, we will stay away.” And “It’s a shame I praised your name. When your simple racist face took center stage, I will go about my day. Turn my cheek and love and walk the other way.” These lines wrap around a simple refrain of “It’s a shame at your age, you’re forgetting simple grace.” The final line of the song adds in the line “unk”, which for anyone not familiar with American colloquialisms is short for uncle.

The song never rises to the point of outrage. Instead of a middle finger, it comes off more as a song of mourning. That loss, and the space it creates, isn’t something I’d really considered to this point when looking at political disagreements within families. Removing a family member from your life can be a necessity; however I’d never taken the time to consider how one mourns that loss. This isn’t to equate this removal with the death of a loved one, but rather to say you have to make sense of the good memories you have with that person in relation to what they became and the negative impact that had on your ability to maintain a relationship with them. It’s a big idea, and it’s explored here with a fair amount of success.

The other song on this 7-inch, “Counting Up”, has been a favorite of mine since I heard it on my local NPR station earlier this year. The lyrics are a look at the loneliness of 2020, juxtaposed against the life goals that have been accomplished. The second verse, “I call all my friends on the phone and talk of better days, with back yard barbeques and beers, punk rock shows and date nights alone in a public place, birthday parties and friends for my kids. But, then the plague set in, the time seemed to stop. I’m no longer counting up.”

This year has been rough; Covid has taken a lot from all of us. From the ability to socialize like we used to, some of us have lost family members to this disease, and some of us have seen mental health struggles intensify or return. Thankfully, we have music and art we can still share … albeit differently than many of us have in the past. It’s not much, but it’s something. Hopefully, 2021 brings us something better. Until it does, these songs will be in regular rotation for me.