Phoebe Bridgers releases album Lost Weekend

• Phoebe Bridgers’ album Lost Weekend arrives on September 14 via Dead Oceans.
• Throughout the record, she explores themes of mortality—most notably with Paul Mescal, as well as the track “For Dad,” which imagines the possibility of death.
• The album’s guest list includes Jack Antonoff, Boygenius, and Maya Hawke, as well as contributions from other musicians and songwriters.

American singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers has released her third studio album, Lost Weekend. The album drops on September 14 via Dead Oceans.

According to the album’s press materials, it’s about the way Bridgers processes grief. Specifically, she addresses the fear that death might be the end—and also the possibility that it could be something else, in the form of the track “For Dad.”

Over the course of the album, Bridgers’ Irish actor Paul Mescal-inspired storyline unfolds. The press materials say that the title Lost Weekend refers to a relationship that was once destined to be, but ultimately wasn’t—while also pointing to the way the album’s songs unfold: “I’m supposed to be married but I called it off.” The same family-hour theme is reflected in the lyrics, which suggest that the couple’s fate could have been different.

In an interview with The Guardian, the song “The Governor’s Waltz” is said to have been inspired by Mescal, Gracie Abrams. In a separate interview with Independent, she also said that the track’s lyrics were written to reflect her own experiences.

The album also features tracks that draw on Bo Burnham. For example, “Bobby,” and also the track “Liberty Tree,” in which Bridgers imagines a world in which Burnham’s ideas take hold.

Other guests on Lost Weekend include the album’s songwriting and production collaborators: Jack Antonoff, Marshall Vore, Christian Lee Hutson, and also Boygenius (Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker). There are also contributions from Maya Hawke, who appears on the tracks “Haunted” and “Never Going Back!,” and Conor Oberst and Jon Brion, who are credited as executive producers.

The album’s overall sound is built around musical experimentation. For instance, the vocoder is used on the track “The Outside,” while “sound design”—as well as more traditional instrumentation—creates an electronic atmosphere, with the vocals sounding detached from the rest of the mix.

Tags: Culture