Beach Bunny, an indie pop quartet from Chicago, have finally released their debut album Honeymoon on Valentine’s Day. The humor of irony is very much present, since the record is one of the most relatable breakup records released in recent indie history. Front woman Lili Trifilio was the only member and driving force behind the band, until she put together a group and released her 2018 hit “Prom Queen” which garnered quite a bit of attention in the indie pop scene. It also surprisingly became very popular on TikTok, with teen girls using the audio to create different videos.
Now that Trifilio is almost done with college, Beach Bunny is becoming much more of a priority. Honeymoon is the group’s first record, following a small string of singles and EP’s. Beach Bunny already has captured the hearts of indie rock listeners, especially due to Trifilio’s presence on the record. She’s a strong and distinct female voice, being very blunt about social commentary in a way that’s still delicate.
Honeymoon starts off with a pretty upbeat song, “Promises”, about losing someone you love. The lyrics, “A minute you’re there, a minute you cared // now you’re gone //It’s so unfair // keeping me from moving on,” describe a universally shared experience of a breakup you just can’t move past. Beach Bunny follows this track with “Cuffing Season” and “April”, both tracks about the fear of being alone and not finding someone to love.
While most of Beach Bunny’s songs manage to talk about bleak topics in a very positive tone, “Rearview” is the first track we see Trifilio become more vulnerable. While the previous songs talk about her struggles with losing people, this track dives deeper into her own self reflection. She begins to question her own presence in relationships, “Was I ever good enough for you? There’s always someone// I’m tryna live up to.”
The track “Ms. California” is very reminiscent of “Prom Queen” in lyrical content, in the fact that Trifilio again compares herself to the significant other of her love interest.
While the rest of the album is more catchy breakup tracks, the song that sticks out to me the most is “Racetrack.” While the lyrical content is very much the same as the rest of the record, the soft and slow melody conveys an even stronger emotional meaning. Lyrics such as “And even the moon can’t maintain the same face//I always wind up in second place,” play into the two minute metaphor Trifilio uses to compare love to a race. It’s a sad break in the middle of otherwise bubbly tracks, but was wonderfully placed to allow for an experience of full emotion while not completely draining you.
Honeymoon was the exact surge of sunshine surf-pop we needed in the middle of this dreary February. Beach Bunny is embarking on a full tour in support of the album, which will help in making them even more known in the indie pop scene.
