Kim Gordon blends dissonance and classic rock riffage on new single, Grass Jeans

Kim Gordon – formerly of alt-rock pioneers Sonic Youth – has returned with a new single, Grass Jeans.

This month, all proceeds from the song – the guitarist/bassist's first new material since her 2019 debut solo album, No Home Record – will benefit Fund Texas Choice, a non-profit organization that pays for Texans’ travel to abortion clinics.

Recorded with her touring band – comprised of drummer Sterling Laws, guitarist Sarah Register and bassist Camilla Charlesworth – Grass Jeans is a powerful reminder of why Gordon is such a legend. 

The song's central riff is a perfect mixture of Stones-y swagger, Stooges-like aggression and New York street smarts. Naturally, Gordon paints the exterior with plenty of gnarled, dissonant six-string blasts, while Charlesworth explores her new wave influences with some lively, melodic bass work.

Though it stands proudly on its own, the song – which you can check out below – will likely put a smile on the face of any Sonic Youth fan.

“I often get asked 'Can music change things for people in a political landscape?', Hell yes it can – but it takes a listener, an audience to make it anything," Gordon said in a press release.

"So please join me in helping to protect and keep accessible a woman’s right to choose her fate by purchasing this song and supporting Fund Texas Choice and their collective efforts to secure abortion access for all. Thank you. It means so much.”

In an interview with Guitar World last year, Gordon commented on the enduring influence of Sonic Youth's trademark blend of classic rock and avant-garde influences, one you can hear plainly in Grass Jeans. 

“I am hearing a fair amount of dissonance in music these days,” she said. “If that’s something we added to the vocabulary of indie rock, from a legacy standpoint, that’s pretty cool. Not that we were the first to do it – Syd Barrett and Pink Floyd were putting dissonance in their music in 1968. I guess you could call them indie rock, too.”

For more info on Fund Texas Choice, stop by the organization's website.