
By Ren Gibson, Staff Writer
It’s beautiful, it’s hopelessly romantic, it’s the return of Lucy Dacus! Dacus released “Ankles” as a pleasant surprise to me and the rest of her fans on January 14th. Just as the snow begins to melt in Boston, Lucy Dacus is here to make hearts melt. “Ankles” is one of the most whimsically passionate songs I’ve ever heard, down to the instrumentation.
A BEAUTIFUL REVIVAL
After spending the last few years penning songs and touring under the Boygenius moniker with collaborators Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker, Lucy Dacus is pulling us back into focusing on her solo career. She began teasing her next album by posting studio snippets on her Instagram page as far back as November. Besides a music video for “Night Shift”, this was the first return to music that Dacus has made since the release of her last album Home Video in 2021. On January 15th, she appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon to debut “Ankles” to the world.
FANTASIZING OF ROMANCE
The single evokes the feeling of a Romance-era piece as the low strings of the introduction begin. A low, orchestral beginning is greeted by Dacus asking, “What if we don't touch?/
What if we only talk / About what we want and cannot have?” Lucy Dacus is no stranger to writing about romance and pining, but “Ankles” has a new level of domestic bliss that hopeless romantics yearn for. As the song picks up, a steady drum beat and subtle synth complement each other without overpowering the string section.
In the second verse, as the beat slows, she sings, “Agent of chaos, angel of death / One of three ancient fates / Playing with your scissors again /How lucky are we to have so much to lose?” This has become a new favorite Lucy Dacus lyric of mine, reflecting on how she may not know how the future of this love may turn out, but she is lucky to have experienced it. Whenever Lucy Dacus refers to mythology, it always comes up as an immediate favorite of mine.
THE FUTURE OF FOREVER
If you’re wondering what’s in store for the future of Lucy Dacus, you are in the right place. She later announced that her next album, Forever is a Feeling, debuts on March 28th. The album will feature more songs parallel to ‘Ankles’ and the other single that Dacus released parallel, ‘Limerance’, but also feature collaborations with artists such as Bridgers and Hozier.
Lucy Dacus will also be touring for said album starting in mid-April. The tour is following a set of smaller, more intimate shows that she is playing in cities such as New York City and Chicago. She’ll be returning to Boston on April 20th and 21st with support from Katie Gavin and jasmine.4.t. I’ve got a feeling that it’s going to be a great set of shows.
Every Monday, our music staff brings you a new Pick of The Week, detailing some of our favorite songs. Check out our previous Picks of the Week here, and make sure to tune in to WERS 88.9FM!