Boygenius, Father John Misty to Release Benefit Records on Bandcamp Friday
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On Friday, Boygenius — consisting of Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus — and Father John Misty are both dropping benefit releases exclusively on Bandcamp, which — for the fourth time since the coronavirus pandemic set in — is waiving its sales fee for the day, meaning that all proceeds go to the artist, and in the case of these two releases, the charities to which the artists are donating their proceeds.
Dozens of other acts and labels have special releases or merch items on the platform Friday, including Bright Eyes, Richard Thompson, Cloud Nothings, Lambchop, Pup, Drive by Truckers and many more.
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You can purchase those recordings and many, many more on Bandcamp here.
Boygenius will make three demos from their 2018 EP available digitally exclusively through Bandcamp. The music will remain online for one day only, coinciding with the site’s 24-hour waiver of its revenue share. Proceeds will be split between three charities, each member having selected an organization local to them: Baker’s donations will go to the LGBTQ organization OUTMemphis; Bridgers’ to Downtown Women’s Center for homeless women in Los Angeles; Dacus’ to Mutual Aid Disaster Relief Richmond for Covid-19 and community relief in the Virginia city.
The demos are voice memo recordings of the songs “Bite the Hand,” “Me & My Dog,” and “Stay Down” that were taped in rehearsal on June 5th, 2018 the day before the group would enter the studio to record its eponymous EP.
For his part, Misty is releasing a covers EP entitled “Anthem + 3” featuring songs written by Leonard Cohen, Yusuf/Cat Stevens, and Link Wray; the EP will see wider release on July 14.
It was recorded a few weeks ago with longtime collaborator and producer Jonathan Wilson at Wilson’s Fivestar Studios in Topanga, California.
Proceeds from Anthem +3 will benefit both international humanitarian organization CARE Action and Los Angeles social-rights organization Ground Game LA.
Misty released the live album “Off-Key in Hamburg “in March on Bandcamp to benefit the MusiCares Covid-19 Fund which has generated over $80,000 in support.
As the coronavirus has devastated the live-music industry, many have asked the best ways to support musicians who suddenly and abruptly lost their main form of income. The usual answer is “buy an album or merch” — and Bandcamp’s fee-waiving days offer a rare opportunity to maximize the amount of that money that will go to the artists. It is an admirable move for a company that is itself independent and it bound to take a big hit from this self-sacrificing act.
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