Mind meld of three separate indie powerhouses. Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus all rose to fame through parallel paths. Each had proven themselves accomplished writers, composers, and performers in their own right, and in the past few years each have emerged as powerful singular forces, crowned darlings of a new wave of female-driven indie rock skewed more towards emo, folk and blues than towards a punk sound.

The three had crossed paths while touring over the past couple years and started a group text. What began as a way to share their interest in music and books developed into a shared online document where musical ideas were passed around, culminating in a recording studio session in early 2018. During this process the term "boy genius" was thrown around as a half-joke used to describe the preternatural confidence that is applied to their male peers. After their recording session in Los Angeles, the boygenius moniker stuck. The music on boygenius is rich with layers of instrumentation and harmonies. Songs often wail - as opposed to whisper - with a certain hardiness to prevail over the gut-reaction to simplify the songs as purely 'sad'. There’s no discernible frontwoman, each singer plays a pivotal role individually and collaboratively in the collective. It's hard to pick favorite cuts, but songs to check out are "Bite The Hand," "Souvenir," and "Ketchum, ID."

• 6-track debut from trio comprised of Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker + Lucy Dacus
• 5th anniversary edition
• yellow colored vinyl
• gatefold sleeve
• limited edition
• original release year: 2018
• music label: Matador 2023

reviewed by RBG 11/2018