Ali Fernand – Managing Editor
Supergroup Boygenius performed at the Westville Music Bowl in New Haven on Sept. 28th. The group is comprised of singer-songwriters Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus. Each of them has a successful solo career but comes together as best friends to make fantastic music.
Boygenius first released a self-titled EP in 2018 and returned together with a full-length album this year called “The Record.” Bridgers has made a name for herself from the release of her second solo album “Punisher” and opening for stars like Taylor Swift. However, her star power never overshines the talent of Baker and Dacus. All three of these artists blend perfectly together in a group with harmonies that mesh perfectly.
The concert took place the day before Baker’s birthday. So, the band and crew brought her a cake on stage as the crowd sang Happy Birthday. They then gave her a bite and with a full mouth she said, “It’s all frosting.”
Boygenius made the live debut of a song set to be on their new EP, “The Rest,” coming out Oct. 13th. The song was called “Voyager” and featured mostly Bridgers’s vocals with their usual melancholic instrumentals.
All three of these artists are known for their sense of humor and they opened the show by playing “The Boys Are Back in Town.” This was both a silly gag but also a nod to their band, which is an all-girl group. They then showed them backstage on the side televisions singing the track “Without You Without Them.” That song is all acapella, which made for a beautiful opening vocal session.
Each artist also got to perform one of their own solo songs. Dacus played “Please Stay,” Baker’s “Favor” and Bridgers’ “Graceland Too.” Bridgers’ song was particularly exciting because despite it being a solo release, it features vocals by Baker and Dacus. It is also rumored to be a song about the deep friendship that Bridgers and Baker have.
Boygenius performed their entire discography including the new song and the three solo songs. “$20” was an exciting song because it was the first of their energetic songs to be played. This was followed by “Satanist,” allowing the crowd one more song to have a bit of energy.
The next songs played brought a more emotional energy to the show. “Emily I’m Sorry,” “True Blue” and “Cool About It” sounded beautiful in the outdoor venue as the crowd sang along. Boygenius nailed these songs live as the nature of a concert brought a new life to these songs.
Another standout moment was when they played “Letter to an Old Poet.” Before playing this song, Bridgers asked the audience to put their phones away just for this one song. This allowed the whole audience to be completely attentive to the performance. It was a beautiful moment where the stadium was entirely dark singing along to this emotional song.
They then ended the show with the popular single from their new album, “Not Strong Enough.” The crowd got extremely excited for this song and sang along very loudly. As Boygenius left the stage, the audience screamed for them to come back to play a few more songs. After about three minutes, they entered the stage once more.
To end the show, they played two fan favorites “Ketchum, ID” and “Salt in the Wound.” Both songs made for a perfect ending to the show.
