There’s nothing like a breakthrough begetting another breakthrough, and 2020’s breakthrough Phoebe Bridgers brought the world her own favorite new band last year with MUNA and their hit “Silk Chiffon”, on Bridgers’ new imprint, Saddest Factory. Yes, the comparisons are easy to make (and not just to Pharbz), but MUNA is another great ‘sad girl pop record’ that exceeds those simple descriptions.
For one thing, MUNA isn’t all sad songs: just look at the big, shining love “Silk Chiffon”, or the seventies kiss-off of “Anything But Me” (that does admittedly make one think of HAIM, another great artist of today). Yes, there are a number of sad tracks, but they vary from the heart-broke synths of “Home By Now” to the beauty of “Loose Garment” and the acoustic country of “Kind of Girl”. And the record ends with the song that actually kind of sounds like Bridgers, the low-key, straight-face vocals & keys heartbreak into big “Shooting Star” (which can make one think specifically of “Chinese Satellite” in metaphor alone).
Maybe you didn’t need another artist breaking your heart and lifting your spirits in the same record. Or maybe you just didn’t know you needed one. But MUNA brings it.
