We’re not always promised earnestness and raw talent from musical guests who show up on late night talk shows, but Julien Baker and TORRES brought both during their energizing joint television debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last week.
Donning brightly colored western suits embroidered with flowers and wielding an eclectic mix of acoustic and electric instruments, Baker, TORRES, and their sprawling backing band are vital and promising in their four-and-a-half minutes on stage. It feels like stepping into a slightly altered version of reality, one where past and future bleed into one another.
Together, the seasoned songwriters blend elements of ’90s-era alt-country, western, and indie-rock; their energizing harmonies feel so riddled with life they couldn’t possibly be defined by genre. Baker and TORRES are returning to the root of something honest, vulnerable and nostalgic with their sound. But they’re also acting as alchemists, creating a secret third space, almost inexplicably, using familiar, common elements. There’s just something about this performance that words can’t quite capture.
“Sugar in the Tank” starts out slightly subdued. Baker sings in a characteristic restrained-yet-emotive voice as she plucks the banjo. TORRES starts a twangy conversation between their Fender Telecaster, the fiddle and the pedal steel. But as the song builds, the energy of the performance becomes electric and infectious. When TORRES first comes in with their rich vocal harmonies and the band kicks into full gear, the song becomes bigger than the sum of its parts. But even as it becomes raucous and expansive, the performance still manages to feel tender, personal and heartfelt.
At one point, Baker sings, “I love you now, already and not yet,” and this trepidation, this confusion matched by conviction, feels deeply fitting for the energy the musicians bring to this performance.
Baker is best known as the founder of indie/folk-pop supergroup boygenius, while TORRES has been trodding a steady path as a solo artist for over a decade. The two just recently started recording and performing together, and it looks like there’s plenty more to come. While “Sugar in the Tank” is the only single Baker and TORRES have released so far, rumor has it they have a full-length country album in the works. The two will be performing in select cities throughout the U.S. this coming spring and summer, and you can check out their full list of tour dates on their website.
Photo Credit: Ybru Yildiz
