Los Angeles singer-songwriter Christian Lee Hutson has shared his first new music of the year with a new track called “Strawberry Lemonade” with a lovely Waley Wang–directed video that takes place in Washington Square Park in NYC. The track was produced with Phoebe Bridgers and Conor Oberst, featuring vocals from the latter and Sharon Silva. Hand Habits’ Meg Duffy also added electric guitar, and Bright Eyes’ Nate Walcott plays some piano and trumpet. It’s quite a nice family affair!
One of Hutson’s most brilliant tracks to date, the single follows his 2020 album “Beginners”. It starts with him detailing a dream. “A series of vignettes about memory, letting go and holding on,” he explained in a press release. “I remember talking to a friend, around the time that I wrote it, about the relentless repackaging of 1960s culture; so some of that ended up in there. The laugh at the beginning of the song is my friend Harry who plays bass on the song.” After all the compelling imagery, Hutson slips in unforgettable sage words. My favourite: “Pain is a way you can move through time / And visit people who are gone in your mind.”
“I want people to feel like it’s okay: we’re all here fucking up all the time; we’re all just learning and living, and it’s going to be all right,” Hutson added. “I don’t even know if I fully believe that, but it’s the voice I always wished I had in my life.”
On his major label debut, Hutson is anything but a beginner. His intricate guitar work, evocative sense of melody and harmony, along with production by Phoebe Bridgers brings about a first record that exceeds expectations. Three traces have led me here. First, Nathaniel Walcott, who wrote the awesome string arrangements for five of the tracks. He is the keyboardist in the band “Bright Eyes”, led by Conor Oberst. Second, the backing vocals sung by Phoebe Bridgers, who is co-founder of a duo named “Better Oblivion Community Center” – with Conor Oberst. Third, who contributed the harmonica? Well, Conor Oberst. So on the bottom line.
All songs written by Christian Lee Hutson except “Single For The Summer” written by Christian Lee Hutson and SharonSilva.
Phoebe Bridgers recorded two tracks for the Spotify Singles series. First, she’s shared a new version of her “Punisher” single “Kyoto,” now featuring iconic singer-songwriter Jackson Browne. The second offering is a cover of John Prine’s “Summer’s End,” featuring backing vocal from Maria Taylor. Hear both songs on Spotify.
At the end of 2020, Phoebe Bridgers released some reworked Punisher songs on an EP called “Copycat Killer”. That EP is now being pressed on vinyl, and you can pre-order the 12″ on ‘Mountain Blast’ green in the BV Store, the songs Kyoto, Savior Complex, Chinese Satellite and Punisher, all given a luscious revamp that is sure to delight any fans of Phoebe’s album and serve as perfect gateway for new listeners into what makes her one of the most special artists of 2020 and beyond.
The Copycat Killer versions of the songs were recorded with arranger and string player, Rob Moose, who has also also worked with Bon Iver, Paul Simon, Alabama Shakes, Taylor Swift, The Killers, Moses Sumney, FKA Twigs, Antony & The Johnsons, Regina Spektor and more. Rob also previously worked with Phoebe on “Georgia” from Stranger In The Alps, which by the way we also have in limited quantities along with Punisher and the new EP (along with the new Julien Baker record that Phoebe also appears on).
Bridgers recently sang “Kyoto” with Jackson Browne at the 2021 Tibet House US Benefit Concert. And, last year, she played a solo acoustic version of “Summer’s End” for a Sirius XMU Session.
Phoebe Bridgers was up for four Grammys this year, including Best New Artist, Best Alternative Album (for Punisher), and Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance (both for “Kyoto”).
Phoebe Bridger’s Copycat Killer EP, out November 10th on Dead Oceans.
Phoebe Bridgers knows how to leave an impression. The singer-songwriter made her debut as the musical guest on the February. 6th episode of Saturday Night Live, which was hosted bySchitt’s Creek star Dan Levy, with a memorable performance.
Bridgers kicked off her two-song set with “Kyoto,” the second single off her sophomore album, 2020’s Punisher. Like in the song’s video, the artist and her backup musicians sport the skeleton onesies while performing the tune, which is up for the best rock song and best rock performance Grammys.
For her second song, the 26-year-old offered up Punisher’s “I Know the End” on a darkened stage bathed in soft red lights, her skeleton onesie gone, though the baubles she wore resembled a rib cage. She once again started soft and dreamy, but about two thirds of the way into the tune, Bridgers let loose, her guitar roaring, the singer-songwriter screaming at the top of her lungs.
Bridgers eventually walked to the front of the stage toward an amp, and for the last 30 seconds or so, repeatedly smashed her guitar against the amp — causing sparks to fly — eventually giving the amp a kick for good measure and finally dropping her instrument to end the set.
Bridgers, who is based in Los Angeles, is up for a total of four Grammys this year. In addition to the two she’s earned for “Kyoto,” the musician is up for best new artist — in which she’s up against Megan Thee Stallion, Doja Cat, Ingrid Andress and others — and best alternative music album for “Punisher“. The Grammys are set to air March 14th on CBS.
Musical guest Phoebe Bridgers performs “Kyoto” and “I Know The End” on Saturday Night Live.
Produced alongside Aaron Dessner (The National, Sharon Van Etten, Taylor Swift), “Collections From The Whiteout” heralds the first time Ben Howard has opened the door to production outside of he and his bands closer confines. ‘Collections From The Whiteout’ marks the London BRIT Award winner’s fourth full-length and is scheduled to arrive on March 26th via Island Records.
The foreboding darkness that coated Ben’s second record I Forget Where We Were and thinly veiled its follow up Noonday Dream, isn’t so evident on Collections.. These are songs written from headlines scanned, or news stories scrolled past. Ben has taken those snippets and let his curiosity take control, creating an aural scrapbook that reverberates with tape loops and guitar FXs.
There are sounds akin to Brian Eno, Durutti Column and Steve Reich in there, but also Neil Young and Townes Van Zandt. It’s a million miles away from Ben’s multi-platinum selling debut, but a path plotted from Ben’s then to his now isn’t so far removed.
The door was also left open to some new players too. Yussef Dayes, one of the UK’s most innovative young drummer/producer’ especially in the field of jazz features, as does Kate Stables from This Is The Kit, James Krivchenia from Big Thief, Kyle Keegan from Hiss Golden Messenger, and the aforementioned Aaron Dessner lent his hand too where needed. Long-term guitarist to Ben’s band, Mickey Smith, remains a reassuring presence. Rob Moose, a long-standing arranger of strings for Bon Iver and a collaborator to Laura Marling, Blake Mills, and Phoebe Bridgers is also present, peppering the mix.
Ben Howard has announced his fourth studio album will be available on Limited Edition Transparent Double Vinyl, Ben Howard – “What A Day” – from ‘Collections From The Whiteout’ New album out 26th March,
This last year, indie rockers Lucy Dacus, Julien Baker and Phoebe Bridgers all released acclaimed solo albums. The three Singer Songwriters guitarist-vocalists were booked on a North American tour together, with Baker and Bridgers co-headlining and Dacus opening. But that wasn’t enough: They also quickly formed a supergroup, and gave it a tongue-in-cheek name that nods to how women are rarely called geniuses with the frequency the way their male peers are. After the trio released its self-titled EP, on which they take turns in the frontwoman role and elsewhere blend their voices and instruments together in perfect bliss. The EP’s uniting thread, though, will surely be the clear-cut lyricism they all have in common, which packs a witty punch line after line. Some might even call it genius.
The debut from rock supergroup boygenius has only one real flaw: it’s much too short. Its length (still on the longer side for an EP, at six songs) is forgivable, though: The women behind boygenius—Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus—are busy artists. They’ve each released a critically-adored solo LP in the last year or so and have thusly been swamped with promotional duties and live performances. So although these ladies aren’t technically “new artists,” their supergroup is new, and music is better for it. On boygenius, the three become one, miraculously and pristinely so. Bridgers, Baker and Dacus pack a novel’s worth of narrative and as many masterful melodies (not to mention harmonies) into just 21 minutes that will leave you feeling as if you’ve had the wind knocked right out of you.
The album ends on an especially magical note. On “Ketchum, ID,” Bridgers, Dacus and Baker assume soprano, alto and tenor and churn up a harmony so handsomely melancholic you’ll find yourself snatching tissues without even knowing why. It’s a fitting epilogue, too, that chronicles the band’s shared experience as touring musicians, and the emotional heaviness following those long nights in unfamiliar places. “I am never anywhere / Anywhere I go,” they sing in unison. “When I’m home I’m never there / Long enough to know.” Those are devastating words, but, at the same time, you get the feeling Bridgers, Baker and Dacus have found some sense of home in one another.
boygenius performed songs off their first EP live at Brooklyn Steel for Pitchfork Live
Setlist:0:50 Souvenir 5:10 Bite the Hand 8:50 Stay Down 13:35 Me & My Dog 17:50 Salt in the Wound 23:35 Ketchum, ID
Their mutual experiences are what unite them, and that bond bleeds through this music in every buzzing, beautiful bar.
Fiona Apple covered The Waterboys’ “The Whole of the Moon” for the series finale of Showtime’s The Affair. She asked Tony Berg to produce the record. Tony called in Matt Chamberlain, Patrick Warren, Ethan Gruska, Wendy Melvoin, and Phoebe Bridgers. Fiona has worked often with Matt and Patrick and knew Ethan as the brother of her former bandmate, drummer, Barbara. This was the first time she had met Wendy and Phoebe and fell in love with both of them.
In a few hours they produced this beautiful rendition of a classic written by Mike Scott. After Mr. Scott (@ MikePuck) heard the performance he tweeted – “Prepare ye to receive goosebumps.” Fiona practiced the first take in a small vocal closet but when it came time for the main event, Tony moved Fiona into the big room where she had a great expanse to sing into. I tagged along with my new camera which I could barely work because I had forgotten my glasses – couldn’t see the buttons, couldn’t focus. Despite the crappy camera work of a blind photographer, the magic that is Fiona shines through.
This collaboration between Apple and Bridgers feels inevitable. Both “Fetch the Bolt Cutters” and “Punisher” became popular choices for everyone’s albums of the year, respectively, Both artists’ songs are known for having a vulnerable core along with a witty, cutting edge. Fans have fingers crossed that the two talented singer/songwriters will cross paths again in the future.
I hope you enjoy this captivating version of a sublime song. Drums – Matt Chamberlain – Patrick Warren Bass – Wendy Melvoin Piano – Ethan Gruska Background Vocals – Phoebe Bridgers
Apple is not the first to take on the song; it’s been a popular one to cover. Other versions of “The Whole of the Moon” have been done by Jennifer Warnes, Mandy Moore and Terry Reid. Prince even covered the song live at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club during his 2014 Hit & Run tour, while U2 have also done it live as part of a medley with “Where the Streets Have No Name.”
The Tiny Desk is working from home for the foreseeable future. Introducing NPR Music’s Tiny Desk (home) concerts, bringing you performances from across the country and the world. It’s the same spirit — stripped-down sets, an intimate setting — just a different space. For her Tiny Desk (home) concert, Phoebe Bridgers chose the White House. OK, maybe it’s a green screen, but she and her team created a sweet mock-up of the Oval Office, with Phoebe performing behind a very special desk. It’s a far cry from the hotel bed in Austin we first filmed Phoebe on back in 2017, but her ambitions and talent run high. She played the Tiny Desk later that year and returned with newfound bandmates, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker, as boygenius one year later.
But there was more to come when she surprised us all for a magical collaboration with her musical hero Conor Oberst as Better Oblivion Community Center just six months later. Phoebe and bandmates Marshall Vore on drums and Harrison Whitford on guitar perform three songs from her brilliant new album, “Punisher”. They open with “Kyoto,” a story song based on her first trip to Japan, followed with a sweet version of “Moon Song” and the sad details of loving someone who doesn’t love them self. And then comes the kicker, as Phoebe introduces herself with the words “I hope everybody’s enjoying their apocalypse,” as the band kicks into her surreal doomsday tune “I Know the End.” And what an end it is: The trio expands to an ensemble and a crowd-sourced chorus of fans — recording from bedrooms, cars, backyards and trampolines — lets out the kind of cathartic scream that has come to define 2020 for so many of us. Phoebe for President, 2020.
SET LIST “Kyoto” “Moon Song” “I Know The End”
MUSICIANSPhoebe Bridgers: vocals, guitar; Marshall Vore: drums, vocals; Harrison Whitford: guitar; Emily Retsas: bass; Nick White: keyboard; Odessa Jorgensen: violin
Not content with a charity cover of the Goo Goo Dolls’ ‘Iris’ and the EP “Copycat Killer”, an orchestral EP of songs from her 2020 album Punisher, Phoebe Bridgers has now released a Christmas cover in November. It is a cover of Merle Haggard’s ‘If We Make It Through December’, of which proceeds from sales and streams will go directly to Downtown Women’s Center, an organisation in Los Angeles focused exclusively on serving and empowering women experiencing homelessness and formerly homeless women.
In keeping with her annual tradition of releasing a charity track for the holidays, Phoebe Bridgers latest song is a cover released today on Dead Oceans.
Produced by Tony Berg, Ethan Gruska and Phoebe, and accompanied solely by Ethan on piano, the beautiful, melancholy rendition of Haggard’s 1974 track is a fitting end to a volatile year. Last year, Bridgers’ holiday single benefited Planned Parenthood.
Phoebe Bridgers covers “If We Make It Through December” by Merle Haggard, out November 23rd on Dead Oceans Records.
Phoebe Bridgers has shared a new music video for her song “Savior Complex” directed by Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge and starring Normal People actor Paul Mescal. The video came about after the two Phoebes connected over email while quarantined; you can watch it at Facebook.
“Savior Complex” appears on Bridgers’ latest studio album “Punisher”. The singer-songwriter recently issued a companion release, the Copycat Killer EP, as well as a cover of Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris” with Maggie Rogers. Last year, Phoebe Waller-Bridge connected with actor Olivia Colman to record a cover of Portishead’s classic “Glory Box.” She comments on the Things That Influenced Her New Album, “Punisher,” in which the singer discussed her admiration of Waller-Bridge. “Dirtbag dudes have Larry David and I have Phoebe Waller-Bridge,” she said. “She strikes a fucking chord in me.”
Phoebe Bridgers remotely appeared on The Tonight Show for a live rendition of her “Punisher” track.
Phoebe Bridgers appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon yesterday (December 2nd) to perform her Punisher and Copycat Killer song “Savior Complex.” Bridgers was accompanied by a self-playing piano. At one point, she shook hands with an adorable dog.
Bridgers sang in a room filled with Christmas decorations . Earlier this week, Phoebe Bridgers had shared a music video for “Savior Complex.” It was directed by Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge and starred Paul Mescal of Normal People fame.
The title track of Phoebe Bridgers’ second album pokes fun at the oblivious fan who, at a concert, will linger at the merch table for too long. Bridgers knows she could easily fill the role, too. “If Elliott Smith were alive, I probably wouldn’t have been the most fun person for him to talk to,” she told The New Yorker. “So I wrote that as if I were the punisher.” The record is the folk singer’s follow-up to 2017’s “Stranger in the Alps”, and her first solo project since she recorded with Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker as boygenius and dueted with Conor Oberst as Better Oblivion Community Center.
On “Moon Song,” one of many standout tracks on Phoebe Bridgers’ new album, Punisher, Bridgers sings, “We hate ‘Tears in Heaven,’ but it’s sad that his baby died/ We fought about John Lennon until I cried.” These lines illustrate one of this album’s greatest strengths—while many records are emotionally resonant but emotionally one-note, “Punisher” is always as complex as it is resonant, unsatisfied with easy answers. The couplet wrestles with the conflicted nature of relationships, both between the speaker and another person and between the speaker and music itself. Like much of the record, the song is simultaneously tender, darkly funny, and mournful.
It’s a lot to take in. And just as we’re processing the weight of these lines, Bridgers whisks us away into a vivid dream: “You’re singing at my birthday/ I’ve never seen you smiling so big/ It’s nautical themed/ And there’s something I’m supposed to say.” Punisher, richly produced and beautiful throughout—complete with lush guitars, synth textures, swelling strings, and 2000s indie-rock horns—is a joy to listen to, but it takes some time to truly sink its claws in, revealing the depth of its humour and sadness. Certain lines kept swirling around in my head after the third listen: the one about whether Elvis “believed songs could come true” off “Graceland Too” or the moment when Bridgers sings, “I’m not afraid of hard work” on “Garden Song,” the album’s lead single.
“Garden Song” may be the most familiar song to fans of Bridgers’ first record, Stranger in the Alps—its slow, stately pace, its guitar picking and ethereal atmosphere, and, most importantly, its lyrics, which create their own self-sustaining universe. Like a faded memory or a rear-view vision of childhood, it’s a world that is at once familiar and strange, a tale of wrong, ghosts, healing, and the work of making things, if not right, then more whole. Bridgers’ voice is joined on the chorus by Bridgers’ tour manager Jeroen Vrijhoef’s resonant bass vocals. Elsewhere on the record, we hear Conor Oberst on “Halloween” and “I Know the End,” Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus on “Graceland Too” and “I Know the End,” along with many others.
The record is a triumph of collaboration, but it is always guided by Bridgers’ vision. Punisher was co-produced by Bridgers this time aroundalongside Tony Berg and Ethan Gruska, who produced Stranger in the Alps—and at every point Punisher is more expansive than its predecessor, both in terms of its instrumentation and its songcraft. Classic Phoebe Bridgers slow-burners like “Garden Song” and “Halloween,” which recall her mostly downtempo debut, float alongside uptempo tracks like “Kyoto” and “I See You,” which reflect Bridgers’ fantastic indie rock collaborations, both as one-third of boygenius and one-half of Better Oblivion Community Center. The dynamic variation on Punisher is one of its greatest strengths. Although the downtempo tracks still set the tone, the addition of tracks like “Kyoto” keeps listeners on their toes.
Punisher, as punishing as it can be, is largely an affirming record. (Apparently, the title refers to the kind of fan who stays at the merch table way too long.) There’s an existential kind of determination to it, perhaps best embodied on “Chinese Satellite,” a moving meditation on doubt, faith, and loss: “Took a tour out to see the stars/ But they weren’t out tonight/ So I wished hard on a Chinese satellite/ I want to believe/ Instead I look at the sky and I feel nothing.” A classic story of spiritual desolation amid the disenchantment of modernity, perhaps. But when no star or God is forthcoming, artists latch on to what they see, forging their own spirituality, based on what symbols are available—in this case the satellite will have to do.
I tend to link the stubborn spirituality of this record, its determination to make beauty out of an ugly world, back to the album’s lead single, “Garden Song,” in particular to the line, “I’m not afraid of hard work,” as it relates to gardening, which is to say fostering life. The album’s closer, the shape-shifting “I Know the End” is as affirming as the apocalypse gets, beginning straightforwardly enough before settling into an incredibly cathartic build—complete with kick drums, horns, and screams—which busts the song wide open. It’s easily the most intense track on the album, but when all the instruments drop out and all that’s left is Bridgers’ voice, something between a death-metal scream and a low hiss, there’s a knowing playfulness to it. The humour that’s made her Twitter legendary often surfaces in Punisher’s heaviest moments, and maybe that’s part of what makes the album a source of hope rather than despair, for all its sorrow. In an interview with Amanda Petrusich in the lead-up to Punisher’s release, Bridgers joked, “Here’s my thing, for your emptiness.” Enjoy.
The Fat Angel Sings 