Folk-rock artist Phoebe Bridgers continues to wow with her songwriting skills on her sophomore album, “Punisher.” It reveals Phoebe doing battle with the destructive ways she used to cope, in order to open up and enjoy the life she’s earned.
Besides her rocketing solo career, the prolific 24-year-old LA-native has also formed two different groups in the past couple of years: grunge-pop group, Boygenius, and roots-rock group, Better Oblivion Community Center.
(Has there ever been a better name than that for the free-floating anxiety community centers tend to inspire? Maybe that’s only my issue—back to Phoebe.)
Her debut album, “Stranger in the Alps,” was an exploration of love, life, and the inner demons that came to haunt her along the way. These demons storm out of a personal hell on her chilling cover of Mark Kozelek’s “You Missed My Heart.”
In “Punisher,” an older and wiser Phoebe sings about new situations and encounters, although her dark spirits haven’t been completely dispelled.
According to Stereogum, Phoebe describes the themes of the second album as being about “crying” and “feeling numb.” Her new collection of eleven songs draws inspiration from the songwriting of the 70’s, with confessional lyrics set to moody rhythms.
“The first record is about trauma,” explains Phoebe. “And this record is about how even though I have the life I asked for, and supportive friends, and everything I want, and I’m very lucky, the tools I used to deal with trauma while it was happening are really holding me back from being able to truly enjoy the things in my life. So that’s what this record feels like, someone who started to go to therapy and work out some of the things you can’t change about yourself no matter your circumstances. You just have to do it.”
“Punisher” is an impressive second album, transforming suffering into beauty—one of the things that makes art sustaining for all of us.
“Punisher” was released on June 18 and is available on all streaming platforms. Check it out and let us know your favorite song in the comments below! (The author’s personal favorite is the ethereal opening instrumental track, “DVD Menu.”)
