Lucy Dacus’ 2025 album “Forever is a Feeling” echoes of love that is both romantic and platonic — a sentiment that seems autobiographical while also being relatable to audiences. The album was released Friday after Dacus confirmed her long-rumored relationship with Julien Baker, who is performing at The Lyric later this month.
Dacus, well-known for her song “Night Shift” and for being a member of Boygenius along with Baker and Phoebe Bridgers, last performed at Proud Larry’s in Oxford in February 2019.
The singles that preceded the album gave listeners high hopes for the release, and Dacus did not disappoint. “Ankles,” using string instrumentation and slightly provocative lyrics, joined sensuality with the idea of romantic love and provided a perfect taste of what was yet to come from the album. “Best Guess,” another single released before the full album, captured the hearts of fans everywhere and gave a glimpse into the friends-to-lovers theme.
The titular track is a fun, upbeat song that is reminiscent of a summer day, introducing a dream-like sound to Dacus’ discography. Echoey background vocals and playful lyrics reflect the theme of joyful love that is prominent in the album.
Highlights of the album include “Modigliani” and “For Keeps.”
The repetition of “You will never be famous to me” in “Modigliani” might sound rude to some people, but when taken in the context of dating someone who shares a similar notoriety, it comes as a refreshing promise to see someone as they truly are. The song utilises more string instrumentals, delivering an overall dreamy sound that continues throughout the entire project.
“For Keeps” changes the vibes from previous tracks to one that is more somber, utilizing primarily an acoustic guitar and Dacus’ voice to invoke the intimate image of two lovers speaking to each other behind closed doors. Dacus also sings of the inevitable idea that most relationships are not permanent, while recognizing that those relationships still hold weight within the participants’ lives.
The lines “We were not something, we were not nothing / We were in between things that made sense” offer listeners a glimpse into what can be a relationship defined by both love and incompatibility.
“Come Out,” a song that comes later in the album, is a clever play on the common queer term of “coming out.” The lines “Come out, come out wherever you are” lean into the playful, childhood game of hide and seek, which brings even more airiness to Dacus’ voice and lyrics.
The sole feature on the album is folk-music legend Hozier on the track, “Bullseye.” Seeing the feature brought high hopes, but, unfortunately, the song does not stand out from the rest of the album. While the lyrics are nice and Hozier’s and Dacus’ voices mix well, the song simply does not have enough weight by itself to stick out from being sandwiched between the more distinct tracks of “Best Guess” and “Most Wanted Man.”
While most of the album goes without notes, “Limerence” is another one of those tracks where nothing is necessarily wrong with the song itself but just seems out of place. While “For Keeps” changes the sound of the rest of the album in a seemingly intentional way, “Limerence” sticks out and would better fit in a different Dacus project, more closely sounding like tracks from her 2018 album “Historian.”
With the exceptions of “Limerence” and “Bullseye,” “Forever is a Feeling” merges platonic and romantic passion into a beautiful project that will be my go-to album for the rest of the year.
