It could have been a one-off side project—an inspired aside from three of the preeminent indie-rock singer-songwriters to emerge in the late 2010s. Instead, Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker made their joint boygenius unit a vehicle for some of the most ambitious work any of them has done. Their 2018 self-titled debut EP is an intimate affair demonstrating their striking chemistry as cowriters and their stunning close harmonies. The 2023 full-length follow-up, the record, expands the palette: cinematic, emo-tinged Americana full of trenchant narratives (“True Blue”), muscular rock ’n’ roll breakdowns (“$20”), and circular, devastating refrains (“Cool About It”).