Present by TYLERDURDAN* is a sweet and sour observation of the evolution-or lack thereof-of humanity from staunchly critical eyes toward the present and the past. The lyrics, written by a human and complemented with AI-generated music, go deep into our flaws in society, how modern society is paralleling conflicts back in antiquity. In this track, tylerdurdan* realizes that humans always manage to repeat mistakes committed throughout history. Take the example of lines like “All that I had seen almost 100 years ago has repeated” and “Almost everything you had understood has been lost.” This is a compliment from the artist upon a stagnant improvement rate in morality and ethics because of the darker tendencies in humanity: greed, war, ignorance, and so forth continue unabated with the face of technological development.

The song structure, in its various tenses such as “pluperfect” and “future,” reflects on both the passage of time and the timelessness of human folly. Verbs have given a philosophical flavor in complicated use in the lyrics, with each tense representative of humanity’s desire to change yet being caught in errors of the past. For example, the line “The present is indicative of the times that run” shows the frustration of the modern age, in which visible progress does not mask internal stagnation.

This critique is taken further by tylerdurdan* in the second verse, as he refers to humanity as “medieval beasts” and “hamsters running on the wheel.” These lines signal our cyclic nature and denote that perhaps we do not progress as much as we would think. The use of animal imagery here serves to further bring into view the human predilection to give in to animal instincts, despite their intelligence. These metaphors remind one forthwith of the fact that despite all technological advances, humanity has failed to transcend its baser instincts.

It is in the third verse that he addresses geopolitical conflicts, specifically the violence in Gaza, and turns all attention to endurance at war and human suffering. Here, social media-Instagram-is mentioned, a site that is supposed to bring everyone a little bit closer, yet ironically has the effect of heightening global awareness with widespread apathy, as people witness and ignore others’ suffering in tandem.

In all, “Present” is a striking lyrical piece using the theme of temporality against the future of humankind. By critiquing our own collective inability to evolve, tylerdurdan* invites listeners to turn and face their complicity in this stagnation, emphasizing the urgency of breaking the cycle of our shared past.