Lucy Dacus has been on my radar for a bit, but it wasn’t until the boygenius EP that came out in late 2018 that I started to dig into Dacus’ solo work (as well as Julien Baker and Phoebe Bridgers). I’ll highlight a favorite boygenius song in the future.
But first, let’s take a listen to Lucy Dacus’ “Night Shift,” the stunning opener off her album Historian.
It’s an epic of heartbreak, eloquently outlining that post-breakup period where you “walk for hours in the dark feeling all hell.”
The song starts with quietly strummed guitar, and Dacus’ soft voice singing a humdinger of an opening line:
The first time I tasted somebody else’s spit
I had a coughing fit
I mistakenly called them by your name
I was let down, it wasn’t the same
The song builds as she fleshes out the fallout of a failed relationship, drums come in, Dacus starts to sing with more intensity. You get the sense that she’s trying to keep it together, remaining calm in the face of this split.
Don’t hold your breath
Forget you ever saw me at my best
You don’t deserve what you don’t respect
Don’t deserve what you say you love and then neglect
With the chorus, Dacus perfectly summarizes that feeling of trying to avoid your ex at all costs:
You got a nine to five, so I’ll take the night shift
And I’ll never see you again if I can help it
Around the 4:10 mark, the band turns on the fuzz: The narrator finally breaks and releases some hurt and rage, and Dacus opens up her voice during the last couple of choruses.
Check out the album version below, as well as a wonderful live version (at the 23:45 mark).
