Phoebe Bridgers Returns With A Bang in "Lost Weekend"
It’s been more than six years since the release of Phoebe Bridgers' last studio album, Punisher, an undisputed masterpiece of indie folk and rock music. And while the singer hasn’t been completely missing, given her release of the EP So Much Wine and her work in the music group boygenius, fans have been waiting for something new. That much bigger has been the joy after the release of her first single "Lost Boys", in the run-up to the release of the new album Lost Weekend, and her tour at the end of the year.
But the question remains: Does Bridgers still got it?
The answer is an enthusiastic yes, as we are happy to report. Phoebe Bridgers returns with 16 new tracks, and each and every one is a hit. Starting with "The Outside", the song describes her struggles both with her own identity and with her complicated relationship with her father. It’s a great opening for the album and a perfect mood setter for what's to come. Followed up by "Lost Boys", the single released as part of the promo, it describes the issues of modern boys and men, be it anger or adulthood. In worrying times of radicalization among young men, it’s definitely a poignant and important piece of commentary.
Another personal song is "The Govenor's Waltz", which is a retelling of Bridgers' relationship with Irish actor Paul Mescal. It’s a slow song, but a touching one, in which she describes the problems that came up during their time together. The next track, "Bobby", switches things up and becomes faster. While the subject is still a sad, familiar one, it nevertheless works for a quick, if still downer, dance.
The namesake of the album, "Lost Weekend", is another slow one, self-reflective at that. It references multiple events throughout history and her own life. From the killing of John Lennon with the lyrics "Surviving my gift until I get shot," to another reference to her liaison with Paul Mescal. What’s to love about the song is the change-up after Bridgers is done singing, and the song becomes much more hectic. It perfectly reflects the conflicting emotions this song is trying to convey.
Another favorite is "Haunted", a bluegrass-country track. It returns to the ghost motif Bridgers likes to use. The song opens with the line "It's not this house that's haunted," and provides a perfect introduction to the theme: a complicated relationship between two individuals. What’s to love about this song is that, despite its difference in genre from the rest of the album, it doesn’t feel out of place at all. It gets followed up by "Panorama", which is mostly instrumentals, with only a few lines sung. It invites you to go inward, to get a bit of introspection going. While not the most exciting of the tracks, that is by design.
"Still Standing" is heartbreaking, as it once again goes back into Bridger's childhood, and the dark clouds hung above it due to her abusive father. Here she tries to come to terms with him after his death.
I wasn’t too young to understand; I just didn’t think it was too bad.
It sums up a lot of feelings people have about their own upbringing and their parents. It hits right where it needs to. "Never Going Back Again" is a short song that repeats the same lines over and over again. What is striking about this one is her dad's voicemail playing in the outro. While the song is quite open in its interpretation, one could see this as her never looking back towards that dark time, which could be an unfamiliar, hopeful message in this otherwise dark album.
The last two songs of the album (disregarding the reprise of Lost Weekend) are "I Can’t Wait" and "As Above". The first of the two references the famous novel The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson. Here, the question of multiple personalities within the same person is posed, along with how to bridge that gap. It describes the long road to self-acceptance in a smart and fascinating way. The latter closes out the album beautifully. Playing with distances and the motif of a plane ride, it gets claustrophobic and uncomfortable. Yet at the end, it’s a great song and stays stuck in your head.
At the end of the day, Lost Weekend is a great installment in the discography of Phoebe Bridgers. One that can go toe to toe with her other albums and EPs. Its messages of reflection, personal growth, and social commentary make for an intense listening experience that will surely hit people where it hurts, but that is, at least in our opinion, a good thing. So if you really want to feel today, do yourself a favor and put this on; it might just be the release of the summer.
LISTEN TO LOST WEEKEND HERE:
REVIEW BY
Lars
Being brought up under deaf parents, as a partially hearing child, I have always struggeled with my search of identity. Inspired by far-distant worlds like middle earth and the tunes of Lord Huron, my goal is not only to tell great stories, but also to understand other people and their tales.
