Article Contributed by jbleicher.com
Published on 2026-10-18
After a series of singles exploring the forces competing for our attention and the connections that give our lives meaning, singer-songwriter Eric Hirshberg released his new album, More Is Not The Answer, October 16. The 10-song collection arrives alongside a new single and video, “Machine Against The Rage,” which brings the album's central message into focus: in a world where technology, algorithms, politics and media can drive people apart, the most powerful force capable of bringing us back together is each other.
That idea takes center stage on “Machine Against The Rage,” a song that turns the language of technology on its head. The title suggests another invention, another system, another technological solution to the problems of modern life. But Hirshberg has something entirely different in mind. The machine is us. It is people choosing to listen, to reconnect, to bridge divides and to recognize the humanity in one another, even when the world around them seems determined to pull them apart.
At the heart of the song is a chorus that transforms that idea into a collective call to action: “Gotta build a machine against the rage / Gotta link our arms together in a human chain / Keep bridging the divides till none remain.”
Rather than treating division as inevitable, “Machine Against The Rage” insists that people still have agency in how they respond to it. Its verses acknowledge the constant stream of bad news, outrage and competing narratives that shape modern life, but refuse to surrender to them. Even when people retreat into their own beliefs and experiences, the possibility of connection remains. The song's message is direct and hopeful: we may occupy different worlds, but we still have each other.
The release serves as a fitting centerpiece for More Is Not The Answer, an album that has gradually revealed its larger purpose through a series of singles released throughout the year. While individual songs examine algorithms, distraction, technology, family, gratitude and the pressures of modern life, the complete record reveals a remarkably consistent perspective. This is ultimately an album about humanity, and the importance of protecting the connections that make us human.
Rather than arguing against technology itself, Hirshberg explores the choices people make about where they direct their attention, what they allow to influence them and what they risk overlooking in the process. The album's title speaks to the constant pressure for more information, more stimulation, more content and more engagement, while suggesting that what people actually need may be something fundamentally different: more presence, more understanding, more meaningful conversation and more time with one another.
“Machine Against The Rage” brings those ideas together in one of the album's most direct statements of purpose. Where earlier songs identified the forces that distract and divide, this one points toward a way forward, placing the responsibility and possibility for change squarely in human hands.
The songs leading up to the album's release have explored that perspective from several different directions. “For Real,” Hirshberg's collaboration with Aloe Blacc, called for empathy and genuine conversation across disagreement. The song marked Hirshberg's national television performance debut on Live with Kelly and Mark, where Kelly Ripa praised it on-air as “an anthem,” and inspired a feature in American Songwriter, which explored the creative partnership and shared perspective behind the song.
“We're All In This Alone” examined the invisible influence of algorithms and the paradox of hyper-connected isolation, while “The Grand Elsewhere” gave a name to the constant state of semi-distraction that leaves people physically present but mentally somewhere else, pulled away from the world around them by the endless possibilities inside their devices.
Other songs approached the album's larger questions through deeply personal experiences. The title track, “More Is Not The Answer,” was written after Hirshberg and his family were forced to evacuate during the Los Angeles wildfires, confronting the question of what truly matters when there is only time and space to save a few possessions. “Less Important Things” explored the bittersweet experience of becoming an empty nester, reflecting on the extraordinary importance of parenthood and the complicated beauty of letting go. And “What's Not Wrong” offered an exuberant counterpoint to the culture's fixation on negativity, inviting listeners to recognize the countless things in life worth celebrating.
Taken together, the songs reveal a record that moves comfortably between the personal and the societal, the intimate and the expansive. What begins as a meditation on attention becomes something larger: a celebration of the relationships, experiences and shared humanity that make life meaningful. From the optimism of “What's Not Wrong” to the collective resolve of “Machine Against The Rage,” More Is Not The Answer argues that people have far greater power to shape their experience of the world than the forces competing for their attention might suggest.
Hirshberg brings an unusual perspective to that conversation. Before turning publicly toward music, he spent eight years as CEO of Activision Publishing, overseeing global entertainment franchises including Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, Destiny and Skylanders. Earlier, he spent fourteen years at Deutsch LA, ultimately serving as CEO and Chief Creative Officer during a period that earned multiple Adweek and AdAge Agency of the Year honors.
After spending much of his professional life understanding how to capture and hold human attention, Hirshberg's songwriting now explores a different question: what actually deserves it? His experience at the center of advertising, gaming and entertainment informs the record's perspective, while his lifelong relationship with music provides a deeply personal way of exploring those ideas.
The album also marks another chapter in Hirshberg's evolution as a recording artist, following his previous release, Second Hand Smoke, which earned praise from Relix and Americana Highways. His latest work broadens that perspective, bringing together thoughtful songwriting, memorable melodies and expansive arrangements in a collection that remains grounded in optimism, empathy and the belief that people can still find common ground.
To celebrate the release, Hirshberg announced a special album-release show for Saturday, October 17, at The Peppermint Club in Los Angeles, with special guest Aloe Blacc. The performance was scheduled to bring the new material to the stage in Hirshberg's hometown, offering audiences an opportunity to experience the songs live as the album began its next chapter.
With More Is Not The Answer, Hirshberg arrives at a conclusion that feels both simple and increasingly essential. The answer to a world of endless noise, competing demands and manufactured division isn't another algorithm, another device or another source of information. It's the people sitting across from us, the conversations we choose to have and the connections we refuse to surrender.
And on “Machine Against The Rage,” that belief becomes a rallying cry.
More Is Not The Answer is available now on all streaming platforms, with the official music video for “Machine Against The Rage” streaming on YouTube.
More Is Not The Answer by Eric Hirshberg
