the record – boygenius ★★★

Year	Album	Artist	Stars	Score	Genre
2023	the record	boygenius	★★★	70	Rock	Indie Rock	Indie Folk

Reforming as a supergroup for the first time since they released their 2018 debut, Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus returned as boygenius in 2023 to release a proper full-length record that has a lot of heart and charm. 

I feel like a bit of a broken record whenever I talk about any of Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus’ solo albums, so it isn’t too surprising that I feel similarly about the record. The vocals are good, the lyrics are perfect for the audience they’re trying to reach and the message is exactly what they want to send. But, similar to most of the collective’s solo projects, I wish the music was a bit more dynamic here and there to really emphasize those well done soft, tender moments.

The rock songs and overall sonic palette of the record is pretty generic, leaning heavily on the production that Julien Baker used on 2021’s Little Oblivions, which itself drew from some 2005-2012 pop rock —  like Death Cab for Cutie’s  Codes and Keys, U2’s How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb and Viva la Vida by Coldplay — that uses a lot of backing synths and soft, echoing guitar and piano textures. 

It’s a good, safe style when done right. “Not Strong Enough” really rocks when it gets going and best showcases the trio’s abilities as both musicians and songwriters. Its anthemic nature is appropriate for the “Always an angel, never a god” repeated bridge, which, when added with the final chorus,  is probably the most impactful moment on the entire record. “True Blue” starts with a nice acoustic riff, simple drum track and builds wonderfully with their harmonies and synths throughout. “Satanist” has a bit more of an edge to it, with a fuzzy guitar part, a really heavy mid section that you could almost imagine some screaming on, and a back-end tempo slowdown that brings the track home using those backing synths again. I would have loved to hear a bit more of that rawness on the record. 

But for a group that’s beloved in the indie world, the more conventional template feels flat at times, like on “$20” and “Anti-Curse,” which are a bit uninteresting and could have benefited from some of the horns and strings found on Bridgers Punisher or some of the noise Dacus can sometimes bring when she wants to. It is a shame, because the other seven songs on the album could really benefit from some of the higher energy moments really paying off. 

The obvious ballads  — “Without You Without Them,” “We’re In Love,” “Letter To An Old Poet,” “Leonard Cohen,”  “Cool About It,” “Emily I’m Sorry” and “Revolution 0” —  are all essentially the same kind of simple, soft, singer-songwriter showcase, without much of a musical build or resolution. I’d be lying if I said I thought any one of the tracks was actually bad, because boygenius does soft ballads well, but too much of it feels same-y to me, especially without those rockers mentioned earlier hitting on all cylinders. 

Of the seven ballads here, “Revolution 0” is probably my favorite musically. The subtle electronics and piano notes give the song some color on its softer moments, and a slight build and noise like the violin melody near the end really help fill out the sound a bit. The other stand out is the album’s closing song, “Letter to an Old Poet,” which has all three artists singing in harmony for most of the track, with these lovely violin screeches hanging over a soft piano melody. The track also references their breakout 2018 song “Me & My Dog,” which puts a nice bow on the project.