When Rolling Stone broke the news back in January that Boygenius — Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker — had reunited and made their first full-length album, it felt like the first time in ages that young music fans were truly excited about a band. The album in question, The Record, more than lives up to expectations, with Rolling Stone‘s Rob Sheffield giving it an “instant classic” rating.
The new episode of our weekly Rolling Stone Music Now digs deep into the band and the album, with Angie Martoccio, who wrote the cover story, joining host Brian Hiatt. Find it here at the podcast provider of your choice, go directly to Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or just press play above. In the episode, we go track-by-track through the album, and look back at the solo discographies of each member as well.
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One highlight from The Record, “Leonard Cohen,” has already sparked some mild social-media backlash from Cohen fans due to one hilariously cheeky verse: “Leonard Cohen once said ‘There’s a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in,’” Dacus sings. “And I am not an old man having an existential crisis/At a Buddhist monastery writing horny poetry/But I agree.” While defending the line, we also point out that Cohen was only 48 when he wrote the “Anthem” line in question, and that he didn’t make his sojourn to a monastery until well after it was released. (Also, there’s discussion of the fact that Lana Del Rey also pays homage to the very same line in the very same Cohen song on her just-released track “Kintsugi,” as discussed on last week’s episode.
Download and subscribe to Rolling Stone‘s weekly podcast, Rolling Stone Music Now, hosted by Brian Hiatt, on Apple Podcasts or Spotify (or wherever you get your podcasts). Check out six years’ worth of episodes in the archive, including in-depth, career-spanning interviews with Bruce Springsteen, Mariah Carey, Halsey, Neil Young, Snoop Dogg, Brandi Carlile, Phoebe Bridgers, Rick Ross, Alicia Keys, the National, Ice Cube, Taylor Hawkins, Willow, Keith Richards, Robert Plant, Dua Lipa, Questlove, Killer Mike, Julian Casablancas, Sheryl Crow, Johnny Marr, Scott Weiland, Liam Gallagher, Alice Cooper, Fleetwood Mac, Elvis Costello, John Legend, Donald Fagen, Charlie Puth, Phil Collins, Justin Townes Earle, Stephen Malkmus, Sebastian Bach, Tom Petty, Eddie Van Halen, Kelly Clarkson, Pete Townshend, Bob Seger, the Zombies, Gary Clark Jr., and many others. Plus, there are dozens of episodes featuring genre-spanning discussions, debates, and explainers with Rolling Stone’s critics and reporters.
