To be honest, it's been tough to concentrate on much this week outside of the big news that two grand juries have failed to indict the police officers who killed unarmed men in Ferguson, Miss., and Staten Island, New York, not to mention the ensuing outrage, grief, and protests that these two events have caused. How are we supposed to keep moving ahead in our day-to-day lives when it feels like our country's very heart is being torn in two?

But we do have to keep moving ahead, and thankfully music is here to both guide us and soothe us, plug us in and distract us. For today's Friday Five, we'll start out with a song that cuts to the very core of what many recent protests have been about, before moving on to some other recent offerings from the Minnesota music scene.

Muja Messiah

For his new song "Pocket Full of Slave Owners," Minneapolis legend Muja Messiah enlisted the help of producer Mike the Martyr and emcees Brother Ali and Boots Riley to help flesh out this pointed, poignant takedown of systemic oppression and racism in the United States. (FYI, the lyrics are explicit, because they have to be.)

Narco States

I may have previously underestimated Narco States, because this song has a much harder and darker edge than the sunny garage rock-psychedelia of their past work. In the words of Wayne Campbell, "You guys really wail!" Dudes play a release show for their new album, Wicked Sun, tonight at the Triple Rock.

L'Assassins

Speaking of bands playing the Triple Rock tonight, L'Assasins just released another in a series of music videos from their new EP Kill! Kill! Kill!... Bang! Bang! Bang! This one is called—you guessed it—"Kill Kill."

Christopher Michael Jensen and Lydia Liza

Rapper Christopher Michael Jenson (C.M.J.) tapped Lydia Liza of Bomba de Luz for this feel-good song, "Beautiful View," which urges the listener to look on the sunny side, if only for a moment.

Too F***ing Cold

And we'll end things today with something silly, in case you need a break from all the anguish of recent days. Thanks, Leah Tousignant, Alex Kosak, and Eli Elstad, for the cute little ditty—and for bleeping out your f-bombs with tambourine shakes. Adorbz.