“the record” is boygenius’s debut studio record that released on March 31. I was lucky enough to go to a global listening party for the album, and was able to fall in love with it before it was even released to the public. This record is for anyone who loves a mix of genres through heartbreaking emotions.
Background
boygenius is a super group made up of artists Julian Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus. The trio made a self-titled EP in 2018, which was the first time the group collaborated (and formed).
Their music range is American indie rock, and all of those genres combine on the new album.
boygenius called the formation of the group an accident after all just becoming friends then writing music together. The band had a co-headlining tour in 2018, and wanted to write one song together for them all to sing and instead made an EP.
The band name came together from the idea that men have been called geniuses since they were born, and to turn it on its head, to make this female supergroup.
Album Highs
The three artists’ voices beautifully blend together to make a fantastic record. Listeners get acapella, three-part harmonies and more, that just makes an overall masterpiece.
“$20” was a song that got an early release and I just had it on replay. It’s the instrumentals and rock vibes that makes this song so catchy. The overall lyrics are simple yet so in depth that’ll make you listen to it a hundred times over to get the full effect. The end of the song features overlapping vocals and screams that make your leg tap and head bob.
On a different level from "$20" is "We’re In Love" which is a slower beautiful song that features Dacus on main vocals. This song is accompanied by a piano and orchestra in the background, which makes it soul shattering.
“Isn’t it enough that we stripped down to our skin? Cold and porcelain,“ is one of the many lyrics that make this song stand out. Dacus' voice is soft and deep that echoes through your speakers and through you.
The overall genre mixing and lyricism makes this album captivating and soul shattering at the same time. The production of the album as well makes it enjoyable with the transitions between songs meshing perfectly especially in the last two songs with no gaps between them.
Album Lows
This album is perfect to me, the only thing that may be considered a low to some is the frequent genre changes. Now if you didn’t know this was a supergroup with different genres coming into it, these frequent changes may throw people off. In my opinion (and because I love each of them) it’s more like an emotional roller coaster to me, but to others it may be confusing.
You will go from a rock and roll screaming anthem to heartbreaking indie song about loss in .2 seconds. It took me from crying one moment to rocking out the next, which I simply adored. This ablum feels cohesive in the way of the heartbreak and queer angst, which makes it enjoyable, but not entirely in the way of genre melding.
Verdict
I absolutely love this record. The genre mixing, lyricism, and production make this album so relatable and enjoyable. The amount of queer rage and heartbreaking loss just fills you up to the brim and will have you scream crying with pure joy.
I give ‘the record’ a 10 out of 10.
Top songs
While truly all of the songs were great, people should definitely check out "$20," “Emily,“ “I’m Sorry," “Cool About It," and "We’re In Love.”
