The supergroup Boygenius released their first album titled “The Record” in March of this year. On Sept. 25, the group announced the release of their follow-up EP titled: “The Rest.” They debuted the first track of the EP, “Black Hole,” for their audience in Boston, Massachusetts that night. Following the track “Black Hole,” are three additional songs titled “Afraid of Heights,” “Voyager,” and “powers.”
Track 1: “Black Hole”
Julian Baker takes lead vocals on this track, accompanied by soft instrumentals that lead to a steady build-up in instrumentals. The melancholy tune is beautifully ominous and matches the tone of the EP art. The closure of the song combines vocals of all three artists that create a beautiful harmony paired with the somber lyrics. It feels like the overall goal of this track was to create an emotion with few lyrics; and I quite like it.
Emma’s personal rating: 7/10
Track 2: “Afraid of Heights”
Lucy Dacus has lead vocals on this more upbeat track. This track pairs simple chords and rhythms with compelling lyrics. My favorite lyric is at 1:57, when Lucy sings “Not everyone gets the chance to live a life that isn’t dangerous.” This lyric exemplifies the whole narrative of the track. I think this will be the most popular tune of the EP, with its catchy rhythm and relatable lyrics. This song is a must-listen.
Emma’s personal rating: 8/10
Track 3: “Voyager”
This track brings the audience back to a somber feeling with eerie opening harmonies. Phoebe Bridgers executes the lead vocals on this track. This song is angelic with a simple guitar picking pattern, and stunning vocal harmonies. I feel the emotion of this song in my gut as I listen to the guitar and harmonies alone. As I tune into the lyrics, at 0:43 I am met with the devastating lines: “I don’t mean to make it all about me, but I used to believe, no one could love you like I do. And I’m starting to think that it might be impossible not to.” Needless to say, this song resonated with me the most and is an excellent song to bawl your eyes out to.
Emma’s Personal Rating: 9.5/10
Track 4: “powers”
This track intrigued me because it is the only track with a lowercase title. The song itself is full of metaphors about extraterrestrial life and ‘powers’. Julien Baker has the lead vocals on this track, and it feels like a song that should be on a solo album. Phoebe and Lucy accompany Julien for a handful of one-second vocal harmonies. The rest of the song includes only Julien’s vocals with haphazard guitar playing. The singing stops with about a minute to spare on the track, leaving the audience with a whole minute to listen to only instrumentals of brass and guitar. This minute was necessary to process the lyrics of the song and what exactly they meant. The song is not bad. However, I do think this song feels like a different project. It was not my favorite in terms of composition, but I do enjoy Julien’s use of metaphors as a way to tell the story.
Emma’s Personal rating: 5.5/10
Averaged Overall EP Rating: 7.5/10
Overall, I enjoyed this EP as an extension of their album “The Record.” I am not a professional, but I am a fan and lover of indie music. Even though not every track was a hit for me, this was a necessary and excellent addition to the band’s album “The Record.”