Video: boygenius – “Cool About It”

Directed by Lauren Tsai. From the record, out now on Interscope.

This demonstrates exactly what makes boygenius so awesome. Each band member takes a verse and they come together on the chorus. Most boygenius songs sound like they could be solo songs with the other two adding harmonies, which is still great because they sound so good together, but when it sounds more collaborative it’s even better, showcasing their distinct voice, phrasing, and perspective in one song.

“Cool About It” is a post-breakup get-together song and it’s the opposite of Olivia Rodrigo’s “bad idea right?” Instead of “accidentally” falling back into their ex’s bed, the boygenius narrators just feel shitty about seeing them and having to pretend everything is fine. It’s a perfect short story.

Bridgers told Rolling Stone her verse about taking someone’s medication is true: “I was seeing somebody who was on an antidepressant. It was a low point for me because there’s a part of myself that’s very impulsive, that scares me, where it feels like there’s no thoughts between having the idea to do it and action. It just feels like I have the idea and I do it. And that was one of those moments for me. It was cool to bring light to it in that song because I think it’s actually kind of funny. My verse just becomes immediately so dark, it slows down.”

The video by Lauren Tsai is a haunting animated story about a dog and a chew toy from the perspective of the stuffy. Or maybe it’s about a girl and her boyfriend. Or a girl and her dog and a stuffy it finds on a park bench. Or all of the above. It’s impressionistic and sad. The moral seems to be that it’s hard to keep it together. There are no happy endings.

Video: boygenius – “Not Strong Enough”

From The Record, out March 31 un UMG.

Sometimes the output of “supergroups” can seem like the throwaway songs that the members aren’t saving for a solo album. And some songs feel like a solo song with some overdubbed harmonies. “Not Strong Enough” actually sounds like a real collaboration with all three members of boygenius trading off lead vocals, and the video confirms that these artists truly enjoy being together.

Phoebe Bridgers told Rolling Stone that the title is a nod to Sheryl Crow’s “Strong Enough.”

“The two wolves inside us can be self-hatred and self-aggrandizing. Being like, ‘I’m not strong enough to show up for you. I can’t be the partner that you want me to be.’ But also being like, ‘I’m too fucked up. I’m unknowable in some deep way!’ Self-hatred is a god complex sometimes, where you think you’re the most fucked-up person who’s ever lived. Straight up, you’re not. And it can make people behave really selfishly, and I love each of our interpretations of that concept.”

My favorite moment of the video is when they’re on the rollercoaster and Julien Baker looks like she’s about to hurl. She’s trying so hard to smile and look like she’s having fun but you can totally tell she’s hating it.

Continue reading New Boygenius video: Not Strong Enough →