When boygenius, the indie band composed of artists Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker, announced their second hiatus in early 2024, it was unclear what this would bring for each member’s career. While releases from Bridgers or Baker have been few and far between, with just one album from Baker, Dacus has had a resurgence of popularity with her album “Forever is a Feeling,” released earlier this year. In the album Dacus explores themes of love, emotional intimacy and her relationship with Baker.
Following the initial release’s success and Dacus’ current tour, we were graced with yet another drop on Oct. 10. “The Archive” version includes demos, live recordings and new tracks, each one more hauntingly beautiful than the last.
Dacus, known before boygenius for popular songs like “Night Shift” and “Hot & Heavy,” has long been a master of the ballad: haunting, emotional narratives with excellent build-up and plenty of angst. I have been a fan of Dacus since this era, and while I would not be mad to hear more songs just like these, I was pleasantly surprised to hear something different in “Forever is a Feeling.”
Replacing the screamable lyrics in her earlier music is a quieter, acoustic quality, emphasizing her skills as a writer and the album’s themes of intimacy and vulnerability in relationships. Contrasted with her previous work, “Forever is a Feeling” focuses on love rather than heartbreak, and the complexities of relationships.
“Forever is a Feeling” was already successful in establishing this new era for Dacus’ career and personal life, but “The Archive” truly cements the intimacy and honesty that Dacus strives to cultivate, complete with acoustic demos and alternate versions that add more emotional depth to the work. This release also includes new tracks that were written for the initial album but ultimately not added, like “Bus Back to Richmond” and “More Than Friends.”
One of my favorite tracks from the initial release was “Best Guess,” and others seem to agree as the original version has over 10 million streams on Spotify. “The Archive” edition of the song, “Best Guess (wedding version),” is somehow even better than the original, adding a softer, more romantic quality that the original was missing.
Whereas the original version is much more produced, with guitar and drums in the background and a faster, indie-pop vibe, the wedding version only uses soft guitar and places most emphasis on Dacus’ rich, alto voice in a slowed tempo. These are small changes, but they made all the difference: with just a tweak to the instrumentals and tempo, Dacus managed to create new meaning through erasing the sense of uncertainty that the original evoked, and replacing it with a sense of security and romantic closeness.
The version on “The Archive,” given the title, was also played at Dacus’ “All Things Go” festival set in Queens, New York last month, where she officiated nine LGBTQ+ marriages on stage.
My second favorite song from “Forever is a Feeling” is “Lost Time,” another which has a new version on “The Archive.” This edition is simply an extended demo, sitting at five minutes and 57 seconds, and adds a stanza to the bridge. Both versions feature a dramatic bass drop to cement her regret of having not confessed her feelings earlier. In “Lost Time (extended),” the bridge includes more about Dacus’ deep relationship with Baker, the song’s apparent subject, saying, “Your face is a language, I’m fluent by now/ You can tell me the whole story without saying it out loud.”
Aside from demos and alternate versions, the new songs on “The Archive” are equally beautiful. Out of all the tracks on “The Archive,” “Losing” is by far the slowest and most melancholic, highlighting Dacus’ haunting vocals and lyricism. While I first appreciated this album for being more hopeful than her previous work, having all completely romantic, hopeful tracks would not be honest to the complexities of love and relationships.
“Losing” is deeply vulnerable, discussing the phenomena of losing yourself in a close relationship and fears of ending up alone. This song is different from most on the album, but it highlights the album’s thematic complexities well.
With 21 tracks, Lucy Dacus’ newest album is a broadly encompassing depiction of love and emotional intimacy, and the new releases do a fantastic job at furthering the album’s depth. “Forever is a Feeling: The Archive” is an incredible addition to Lucy Dacus’ already masterful body of work, and I look forward to hearing more from her in this new era.