Coryphe

There are bad bands, ok bands, good bands – definitely some super bands out there. Which, however, are not to be confused with supergroups. Those, in turn, can also be anywhere on the spectrum from bad to super (and beyond – I mean, feel free to make your own scale). 

While a super band will be something quite subjective to determine, the supergroup is a bit easier to nail down. Let’s see what Merriam-Webster has to say: 

[quick interjection, ‘cause, I shit you not, this is straight up hilarious and was not pre-planned:]

supergroup
noun
su·​per·​group [sü-pər-ˌgrüp]

1 a
: a group made up of very talented, renowned, or expert members

… a blog run by an international supergroup of academic linguists …
—Deb Amlen

especially : a musical group made up of established, prominent musicians

Phoebe Bridgers’ latest effort is a supergroup called Boygenius with two other singer-songwriters, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus …
—Joe Hagan

Now, why is that hilarious? Because the band I am talking about today is called—you guessed it—boygenius! 

Indeed, Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus, all successful indie artists in their own rights (with Phoebe undeniably being the most renown at this point in time) joined forces to create indie supergroup boygenius back in 2018.

According to self-told lore, the three happened to be big fans of each others’ music and then somewhat accidentally fell into a band, after having met. They also point to a communal feeling of revolt against their perception of the music industry pitching female musicians against one another, as a driving force behind their collaboration. 
When working on material together, Julien, Lucy and Phoebe would react to either of them questioning their ideas’ validities with “No! Be the boy genius! Your every thought is worthwhile, just spit it out.” All three having had experiences working with male artists who held themselves as if they’d been told they were geniuses since birth.

Last year, “the record” (2023) was released – a great album with a title that I like to think is a tongue-in-cheek joke, and not of the too-meta-for-your-own-good. Their first music video is a composite of the album’s three leading singles, titled “the film”. And seeing how their initial EP’s cover is a nod to fellow supergroup, Crosby, Stilly & Nash and their eponymous album, I think that reading of being keenly self-aware fits quite neatly.

Either way, the album is pretty great, so I’d recommend a listen or two.

Cheers, y’all