The Rest is the second extended play by American indie rock supergroup Boygenius, released through Interscope Records on October 13, 2023. A follow-up to the band's first full-length album The Record, individual songs were revealed one at a time while on tour, eventually performing the entire EP.
Reception
This album was shortlisted as notable for the week at BrooklynVegan, where Andrew Sacher opined that "this material is just as strong as the songs on the full-length". Alex Hudson of Exclaim! chose this as a Staff Pick stating that "as we near the end of 2023, it reasserts boygenius as one of the year's defining bands, and even more than the sum of their formidable parts". El Hunt of Evening Standard gave this EP 4 out of 5 stars, writing that "The Rest feels less cohesive than The Record, and rather than a love letter to accidentally stumbling on creative alchemy, Dacus, Baker and Bridgers all get their own moments in the spotlight" and called it "the perfect debut companion piece". Alana Rae praised the storytelling in this album in her review for The New Zealand Herald, writing that "the four songs follow complex, often melancholic, relationships with others or, in some cases, themselves". Thomas Smith of NME gave The Rest 4 out of 5 stars, stating that "there’s material... that could have fought hard for space on their debut album". Olivia Horn, writing for Pitchfork Media, scored this album a 7.5 out of 10, stating that it is "aglow with the sense of triumph that has haloed the group’s recent history". In Spill Magazine, this was an editor's pick and critic Joseph Mastel rated it 4.5 out of 5, concluding "it might not reach the perfection of the record, but the rest is still a magnificent group of songs". Marc Abbott of Under the Radar rated this EP 6 out of 10, writing that while "there are moments of brilliance" here, but that it "comes across as sounding like that’s exactly what they deserve and need: a rest".
Track listing
"Black Hole" – 2:21
"Afraid of Heights" – 2:41
"Voyager" – 2:48
"Powers" – 4:14
Personnel
Boygenius
Julien Baker – instrumentation, vocals, lead vocals on first verse of "Black Hole" and all of "Powers", production Phoebe Bridgers – instrumentation, vocals, co-lead vocals on second verse of "Black Hole" and all of "Voyager", production Lucy Dacus – instrumentation, vocals, co-lead vocals on second verse of "Black Hole" and all of "Afraid of Heights", production