“3,000,000 Years” by Peter Kleinhans is a Jaunty Ditty About Collective Human Hubris

PeterKleinhans3_sm — Peter Kleinhans, photo courtesy the artist

Peter Kleinhans comments on the sweep of human history and hubris on “3,000,000 Years” with an irreverent wit. Recounting the endless ways in which our species has discovered ways to progress civilization and being in love with our own cultures with the chauvinistic delusions of exceptionalism. Whether that’s our use and misuse of science, religion, philosophy, politics, concepts of race and so on, Kleinhans playfully punctures the pomposity of the homo sapiens and our willingness to overlook history in pursuit of narrow self-interest as we rationalize the destruction of the world and each other. The upbeat, jangle pop sound of the song gives it a bit of a surreal quality but one that will probably be easier to accept by more people than some song that sounds like the trainwreck of forward momentum into doomsday that is modern human civilization and maybe, paradoxically, songs and art like this will get a few more people to think about things in their proper context and instead of despair be willing to adapt to a necessary shift in consciousness and lifestyle. Listen below and follow Kleinhans at the links following.