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In his latest single, “When the Country’s Gone,” local farmer/songwriter Brett McFarland expresses a deep concern about the state of the world and the future being left for the next generation. He touches on Humboldt’s long history of boom-and-bust economies and its enduring impact on the people who live here.
The album, “Humboldt,” is part of a social impact project McFarland is working on to “raise awareness around environmental issues and inspire change,” according to a press release announcing the release of his new single. In the music video’s description on YouTube, McFarland highlights the Ancient Forest Alliance, an environmental organization dedicated to protecting old-growth forests, the Betty Kwan Chinn Homeless Foundation and Klamath River restoration efforts.
As good-intentioned as he may be, some of the lyrics in McFarland’s new song are a bit misleading, as noted by a few folks in our comment section.
As you know, dear reader, it is in our journalistic nature to poke holes in nice things in the enduring search for truth and clarity. To that end, we’re deploying LoCO’s False-O-Meter ™ to assess the validity of some of McFarland’s lyrics. We’ll rank ‘em on a scale from “As if!” to “Yeah! Checks out!” Let’s play!
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The music video opens with McFarland walking down one of the docks at the Woodley Island Marina, carrying his young daughter in his arms as he delivers the song’s opening line: “Well I love my child I’m a true believer but I wonder what kinda world we’re gonna leave her.” The camera pans down to an orange-capped syringe and a condom sitting atop a tangle of seaweed at the water’s surface.
LoCO False-O-Meter rating: “Seems Sus”
Sure, littered drug paraphernalia can be spotted along Eureka’s streets – this unfortunate trend has been discussed ad nauseum at city council meetings and even inspired a local rap song, “Orange Cap City” by Hiway – but this sighting seems a little, uh, staged? I get it, the needle and condom floating in our beautiful Humboldt Bay are meant to highlight the degraded state of society and its impact on the environment but it’s a bit much, no? Alas, subtlety is a dying art.
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As the drum beat slowly ramps up, there are flashes of floating plastic water bottles, trash on the beach, an aerial view of a landfill, a strip mine, a redwood tree stump, a dried-up lake bed, wildfires, oil refineries, a wind turbine, the “Eye of Providence” on the $1 bill, clear cut forests, tent cities, a torn American flag, and then the screen goes black.
“I used to think I knew but now I ain’t too clear how we’re ever gonna make it out of here,” McFarland sings as an aging fisherman unties his boat from the dock and heads out to Humboldt Bay. He is soon joined by McFarland and another guy ripping the harmonica at the back of the boat as the song takes off. “I don’t know what’s right or wrong but I’m gonna cry when the country’s gone.”
As the boat passes Schmidbauer Lumber, McFarland calls out Humboldt’s long history of boom-and-bust economies tied to resource extraction. “Well, the city man came with a big swingin’ dick singin’, ‘We make the problems only we can fix’,” he sings over a clip of a faceless businessman looking out over skyscrapers.“Yeah, they dug all the gold and they cut all the trees and now they’re coming back for the ocean breeze.”
LoCO False-O-Meter rating: “You’re Not Wrong, But…”
For nearly 200 years, boom-and-bust industries (gold, timber, fishing, weed) have dominated Humboldt’s economy. Those industries came with a lot of perks, but I think it’s safe to assume that the proverbial “city man” didn’t have the best interest of Humboldt – or our environment – at heart when he “came in with a big swingin’ dick.” No argument there.
However, there’s an important distinction between the extractive industries of yore and the burgeoning offshore wind industry. For one, wind is a renewable resource that is naturally replenished and cannot be depleted. That said, there are still a lot of questions regarding the potential environmental impacts associated with floating offshore wind turbines, which are actively being explored by scientists and wind developers around the world. (You can check out LoCO’s offshore wind coverage at this link.)
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McFarland continues: “Yeah, the biggest fish farm on the whole West Coast cooking GMO salmon while the fishermen sell their boats!”
LoCO False-O-Meter rating: “As if!”
The fish farm McFarland is referring to here is the land-based fish farm that Norway-based seafood company Nordic Aquafarms plans to build on the Samoa Peninsula. When the fish farm was first dreamed up, Nordic planned to raise Atlantic salmon at the facility. However, in April 2023, the company changed its plans and opted for yellowtail kingfish instead. Nordic has also committed to avoiding all GMOs and antibiotics in its fish feed.
It seems unlikely that Nordic’s project would be the “biggest fish farm on the whole West Coast” but it was difficult to find a definite answer. According to the Outpost’s previous reporting, the facility’s five buildings would span roughly 766,000 square feet across the 30-acre site. Compare that to Kent SeaTech, which sits on 160 acres – 6,969,600 square feet – near Palm Springs. However, Kent SeaTech doesn’t list the square footage for its facilities, so we couldn’t make a direct comparison. Also, it’s not clear if McFarland’s use of “West Coast” means West Coast states or coastal communities. I know, we’re being nitpicky but this is for your own good!
And to be clear, our “As If!” rating does not apply to the bit about fishermen having to sell their boats. There is no doubt that the local fishing community has struggled in recent years due to ever-increasing environmental regulations and declining revenues associated with shorter commercial fishing seasons, which are often delayed or canceled by low abundance, price negotiations, and/or the presence of domoic acid in shellfish.
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In his last verse, McFarland decries the state of the U.S. economy. “You and me are the GDP, buying debt in the land of the free,” he sings. “They say if you ain’t growin’ then you’re gonna die, but it’s a pyramid scheme and a hell of a lie. All around the country folks are getting priced out and mom and pop are rentin’ ‘cuz they can’t afford to buy a house!”
LoCO False-O-Meter rating: “Yeah! Checks Out!”
There are a lot of economic factors that play into the national housing market that I am not at all qualified to speak to, but I think it’s widely acknowledged that the average American cannot afford to buy a house due to exorbitant prices, rising interest rates and limited availability.
Still, I think it’s important to note that the U.S. economy is actually in pretty good shape. People are struggling economically but inflation is down and economic growth is solid, according to a recent assessment from Nerd Wallet.
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McFarland closes the song by repeating, “I don’t know what’s right or wrong but I’m gonna cry when the country’s gone.” The music video ends with aerial footage of a neighborhood decimated by fire and fades to a black screen with white text: “Find meaningful ways to make a difference.”
McFarland and friends are already working on a music video for his next song, “Klamath,” which tells the story of the decades-long, indigenous-led effort to undam the Klamath River. Want to be a part of the music video? Show up to the Arcata Playhouse at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 9, but be sure to RSVP by sending an email to the contact page at McFarland’s website – linked here.
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