Julien Baker - Sprained Ankle, my god

i thought the first album was called 'sprained ankle, my god' because of this thread until i saw it in a record store last week

i gotta be real "appointments" reminds me of taylor swift's "dear john"

for me this is a great thing

or like "dear john" merging with jimmy eat world's "hear you me"

haha, I didn't know those songs but listening now and very otm - she def has the potential to cross over

loving the single, which is apparently the first one off the album, maybe the other 2 were from an abandoned ep?

jfc this new album

I know you do better when you're by yourself
Free from the weight of my dirt-poor health...

wait is the new album out out yet or you're just talking about the singles?

i'm so excited i'm seeing her next month in philly

New album. Not out yet, but I've been sitting on a stream I've been too timid to listen to until lately

I probably won't spend too much time with the LP before it's public. This is unusually fraught territory for me, so I kinda want the support group experience of listening to it with other people. (Without getting too much into my personal stuff, "Appointments" alone is enough to leave me in a mild fog of panic for hours. There was a time when Baker's music really helped build me back up, but lately it feels like a straight trigger, sad in an almost unhealthy/unconstructive way, so I don't quite know what to do with it now. In a lifetime of listening to music, I've never been in a position remotely like this before).

But as for the album itself it's gorgeous and triumphant and potent and brilliantly written and it totally lives up to the promise of the debut, while expanding on it in so many different ways. I'm hoping I can find a place for it in my life, because it's phenomenal.

um what do i have to do to get access to that stream?

pitch a review somewhere. If you're interested in possibly covering it I can PM you the publicist contact (it's being serviced through a very critic-friendly PR firm and label)

hmmm i haven't written a review in like 5 years but it might be worth it to hear this early...

yeah can't hurt. Even if you just wanted to pitch somewhere small or modest, a blog you enjoy or something, it might be worth it and the publicist would probably be cool with that. It's the kind of album that stirs a lot of thoughts. I can't imagine anybody listening and being like, "nah, I don't have much to say about this."

When is this coming out? 'Appointments' is so achingly great.

listening to Sprained Ankle now, it is indeed a unique tearjerker

Out Oct. 27, just before the cruelest week of the year (when daylight savings time ends and the world suddenly feels very, very dark).

Ahhh that's perfect, thanks

Two more thoughts then I'll shut up for a few weeks: The title track is an experience and I'm excited to see how she plays it live, and "Sour Breath" is one of her best songs

Any percussion?

Appointments has an indie-Christian Contemporary element that sticks out to me, like Eisley (Texas band) a decade ago.

No spoilers!

(j/k :))

xp

I do not get any (indie-)Christian vibes from Appointments, but that's probably because Jesus isn't alright with me :) She does believe in god, so that would make perfect sense.

no doubt in my mind JB knows Eisley's stuff

the little "In Christ Alone" interlude at the end of "Go Home" on Sprained Ankle threw me for a loop the first time i heard it

"turn out the lights" (the song) is out and it's stunning and huge

song is amazing, album is amazing. Does such a great job expanding the sound of her first album while preserving the feel of it.

my god

Just bought tickets to see her at the end of November (w/David Bazan opening). She's playing a gorgeous old theater here with amazing acoustics, looking forward to just sinking into it.

Seeing her next week for what will surely be her last gig under twenty bucks.

she is amazing and deserves every success but boy did she zoom past Bazan, a guy who's been good to great for a long time

i realize this happens all the time, that xpost just struck me.

https://www.thefader.com/2017/10/18/julien-baker-turn-out-the-lights-sprained-ankle-interview

I just really need this to be streaming somewhere so I can properly cry along to the new songs at the gig next week

We speak a few days after Baker opened for one of her longtime heroes, Paramore
surprised at this connection - slightly off topic, where do I start if I want to get to know Paramore?

i like the self-titled a lot

s/t or brand new eyes

I used to get Paramore vibes from her music. Different volume levels, obviously, but there's a similar emotional/blunt candor to their songwriting

Seconding s/t; that one is their masterpiece. Riot! is one of my favorite alt-rock albums of the '00s, though, and probably their most influential, even if it's the one most people feel like they've outgrown

the new one is my fave but it's definitely an outlier sonically. S/T is probably the correct answer

thanks, will listen!

She walked on right after "Rose-Colored Boy," lol

It was a v good show but not quite as entrancing as the last one, probably cause the venue was 4x bigger and people were filming and singing along this time

sounds p cool!

I also picked up the new album at the show and it's very good but tbh I'm just not sure about her move to the piano. She's an incredible guitarist but a fairly plain pianist and it turns the piano-based songs into blunter, less expressive things.

1:49 in Shadowboxing - shivers

i'm listening to this right now. if i can find someone to go w/ me i'm gonna see her sunday.

The new one's really good. "Sour Breath" is the one I keep repeating whenever it comes on.

She's a terrific lyricist, too -- the territory she covers could veer into maudlin or self-indulgent really easily, but her metaphors are vivid and honest.

and relatable, I think ... she sings about universal things in a way that feels not just personal, but tangible

I think my *slight* disappointment with the album stems from how much I loved the "Funeral Pyre"/"Distant Solar Systems" single. The album feels a bit broader and safer by comparison

Yeah, that single is very intimate. Reminds me of Elliot Smith's earlier stuff. But I also like the sweep of the new one, it's kind of like bedroom stadium-rock.

hurt less, my god

she is so powerful

I don't get the hype, and i tried. I thhink it might be the dramatic singing style

"Sour Breath" is still my fav, but man that closer.

this album is fine. idk why i am particularly unable to connect with it. i was sorta hoping the expanded arrangements would include drums

"hurt less" is v good

Tried listening to this album today. It sounds like it was commissioned by a music supervisor at Hulu. Maybe the most faceless thing I've heard all year. Genuinely baffled by the appeal of stuff like this - or at least baffled how people can tell this sad-girl-with-guitar from the six dozen others who sound exactly like her who also put out albums this month.