Ignored Obscured Restored
Every December for the past many years, a group of younger people in my family, mainly millenniums, send me their five favorite songs for the year. I build an anonymous Spotify playlist and share it with the group. Part of the fun is guessing who selected which songs. It is a great way for an old geezer like me to keep a finger on the pulse of what younger people are listening to. But it also prompts me to think about my favorite songs, albums, and artists from the year.
That leads me to boygenius – the “supergroup” that’s made up of Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus – all talented and successful artists in their own right.
They released their first full length album this year called the record. It is a worthy follow up to their 2018 EP that gave us the first taste of what they could accomplish together.
All three of the group members take their turn with the pen, so it’s hard to choose just one SotW from this fine album, but I’m going with “Cool About It”.
“Cool About It” is a gentle folk song centering on acoustic guitar and banjo. It would fit nicely on a Simon & Garfunkel album. The harmonies are stunning.
The lyrics tell the story of the singer meeting up either with an ex or someone she has a crush on, and trying to act like she doesn’t have feelings for him/her.
Met you at the dive bar to go shoot some pool
And make fun of the cowboys with the neck tattoos
Ask you easy questions about work and school
I’m trying to be cool about it
Feelin’ like an absolute fool about it
Wishin’ you were kind enough to be cruel about it
Tellin’ myself I can always do without it
Knowin’ that it probably isn’t true
This song is just a small sample of what boygenius is all about. And don’t let this one song fool you. The rest of the album is powerful indie Rock. Its place on the record takes the role that “Landslide” fills on Fleetwood Mac. Check out the complete record and this video from their recent appearance on Saturday Night Live.
Enjoy… until next week.