Boygenius, “the record.” The record, the first full-length album by boygenius, starts out with a lovely, sparse, Carter-Family-style a capella harmony on “Without You Without Them.” It’s as if Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker wanted to stake their claim right up front as members of the great American…

The best albums of 2021 include Evanescence, Vince Staples, Julien Baker, Lindsey Buckingham, Black Midi, Lucy Dacus, Leon Bridges, Faye Webster and Shame. Best of 2021 Welcome to the sixth part of the top 50 albums of the year, according to the RIFF staff that reviewed hundreds this year.…

Phoebe Bridgers performs at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley on Oct. 16, 2021. Onome Uyovbievbo/STAFF. BERKELEY – Phoebe Bridgers brought her “Reunion Tour” to the Greek Theatre Saturday night, and fans were singing along from the first song, “Motion Sickness,” off 2017’s Stranger in the Alps. The wanton wails of…

There are few things as nostalgic as pulling out a home movie on VHS and seeing your childhood self. Running around in dress-up clothes, with high-pitched voices or even a full set of baby teeth, home videos often conjure memories and feelings of a time when life was simpler.…

Julien Baker has never been one to shy away from depicting dramatic and intimate parts of life in her music. Since her 2015 debut, Sprained Ankle, her vices, addiction and sexuality have featured heavily into her work and are ever apparent on her new album, Little Oblivions. But unlike the previous…

R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe realizing he never wrote a song specifically about rolled ankles. But Julien Baker did! Ow. I am, to say the least, breakable. Occasionally my joints just kinda decide not to be joints anymore. For example last weekend while foolishly attempting some light yard work I rolled…

Phoebe Bridgers performs at the Fox Theater in Oakland on Nov. 27, 2018. Photo: Chloe Catajan. The end has finally arrived—the end of 2018 that is. That means it’s year-end list time. With great albums comes great songs, and in a year that brought us plenty of great singles,…

Boygenius performs at the Fox Theater in Oakland on Nov. 27, 2018. Photos: Chloe Catajan. OAKLAND — It may have been Julien Baker at the top of the marquee Tuesday at the Fox, but the Memphis singer-songwriter shared equal stage time with her two openers, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus.…

Kyle Kohner’s five-part series ranking the 50 best albums of 2017 continues with numbers 40 to 31. Missed the first entry? Start at the beginning. 40. Ariel Pink – Dedicated to Baby Jameson Dedicated to Bobby Jameson signals a return to Ariel Pink’s roots with a lo-fi approach, thus making this project feel less manufactured…

Photo: Jay Demetillo Welcome, once again, to my annual countdown of my most entertaining music experiences of the year. I attended 54 concerts this year, up from 51 last year and 41 the year before. In compiling this list, I’m not trying to scientifically list the best or most technically proficient…