Julien Baker Little Oblivions LP (Golden Yellow Vinyl)

Paste's The 50 Best Albums Of 2021 - Rated 36/50!

Little Oblivions is the third studio album by Julien Baker. Recorded in Memphis, TN, the record weaves together unflinching autobiography with assimilated experience and hard-won observations from the past few years, taking Baker's capacity for storytelling to new heights. It also marks a sonic shift, with the songwriter's intimate piano and guitar arrangements newly enriched by bass, drums, keyboards, banjo, and mandolin with nearly all of the instruments performed by Baker.

On her third album, Julien Baker's self-lacerating storytelling gets a more expansive canvas to work with. The big, full-band sound makes all the small moments of pain surreptitiously devastating.

Giving the impression of being ready for bigger stages, Little Oblivions turns up the volume and expands arrangements, including notably adding a consistent rhythm section to her songs for the first time. Beyond mere 'full-band arrangement,' though, tracks like 'Ringside' and opener 'Hardline' feature rousing, arena-sized moments with a sea of ringing guitars, shimmery keys, and, in the case of the former, full drum kit and crashing cymbals...What also hasn't changed over time are the songwriter's self-examining, ruminative lyrics and pained vocal delivery...