Lucy Dacus - Home Video
Critic Score
Based on 27 reviews
2021 Ratings: #156 / 753
Year End Rank: #17
User Score
2021 Rank: #102
Liked by 282 people
Sign In to rate and review

CRITIC REVIEWS

90
Gigwise

What Dacus has done with Home Video is nothing short of sensational – it’s an album capable of effortlessly tugging at the heart strings and is almost certainly a shoo-in for some end of year lists.

90
Slant Magazine

It takes profound empathy to write an entire album about your own past and have it turn out to be about your love for others instead.

90
Rolling Stone

Home Video is her greatest work yet — a cohesive and poignant collection of tales from her teenage years in Richmond, Virginia.

90
Exclaim!

The album is a starkly honest and unabashed look at what it means to find your footing, fall in love and forge your own path.

90
DIY

In each tale she finds both loss and hope, a musical representation of the intricate jigsaw of life.

80
The Forty-Five

On her third album, the American songwriter plunders her past for gutsy, clear-cut tales of teenage love and friendship.

80
Dork

As each track unfolds, it feels as though you are watching Lucy through the lens as she returns to her coming-of-age years.

80
Mojo

With Home Video ... Dacus finds the pages of her diary she just can't shake, turning them into songs that are destined to stay with you, too.

80
Uncut

It's a clever trick: blending specific details straight from memoir with the eloquence of hindsight and, where needed, a pinch of wilful fiction, finding points of universal connection amid all the personal nostalgia.

80
Clash

It’s a powerful ending to a powerful album, confirming Home Video as another exquisite offering from Lucy Dacus.

80
The Skinny

Home Video is intimate, occasionally discomfiting, and, most of all, brave – the sound of an artist choosing to be at her most vulnerable, in front of a bigger following than she’s ever had before.

80
Sputnikmusic

Home Video is a vibrant, unsparing celebration of life's many chapters and what it means to be human: flaws, doubts and all.

80
Under the Radar

Regardless of her context or yours, Dacus weaves a broad scale epic full of lusty almost adventures, broken hearts, dashed dreams, and damsels in distress that couldn’t quite be saved.

80
Paste

Home Video ... is just what you’d expect from such a talent. Here, her wise brand of rock music blooms into something even more palpable, relatable and beautifully messy.

80
NME

For the most part, Dacus proves that looking back at your past might make you cringe, but there is beauty and value in those faltering, gawky days.

80
AllMusic

With Dacus' warm vocals and melodies leading the way throughout, Home Video is an engrossing set steeped in life lessons and nostalgia.

80
PopMatters

Home Video brings Lucy Dacus’ early era to a sort of summation without any sense of her artistic momentum slowing down.

80
musicOMH

With a quotable line on almost every song, Home Video cements Dacus’ reputation as one of her generation’s major talents.

78
Spectrum Culture

After years of writing impressionistic ballads in the abstract, Lucy Dacus has returned with a collection of songs steeped in nostalgia, regret, and explicit personal connection.

78
Beats Per Minute

Home Video is undeniably a Lucy Dacus album; one that’s a reflection of not only the rise of her star but of the ever-growing liberation that comes with emotional vulnerability.

77
Pitchfork

Addressing faith, young love, and nostalgia, the songwriter’s autobiographical third album is empathetic yet unsparing, catchy and finely crafted.

75
Northern Transmissions

Her regard for the past and how it’s shaped her and will continue to do so makes Dacus a rightfully prominent figure in the indie folk scene.

70
No Ripcord
On her third album, Lucy Dacus makes it clear that her latest collection of songs is not just personal but autobiographical.
70
Loud and Quiet

The heavy emphasis on poetry is typical of Dacus, and this album only adds to her prestige as a musician whom I believe is a fantastic characterization of American music.

70
The Needle Drop

Home Video can give off a boilerplate indie vibe, but Lucy Dacus' vivid and charismatic songwriting is more than enough to elevate it.

60
The Observer

Home Video is Dacus’s own third album of closely observed songwriting, most of which plays out at a gentle indie-rock chug or strummed lo-fi.

60
Record Collector

Home Video revels in a post-adolescent nostalgia; as well as whip smart lyrics about Smalltown USA, Dacus is unafraid to peel back the veneer of cosy US surburbia.

Valeyard
95

This is this year's Punisher

Case
80

Home Video is a beautiful and great album with some fantastically specific songwriting and a lot of diversity throughout the tracklist. And whether it’s a dark and sad ballad or a more upbeat track sonically, Lucy Dacus kills it regardless.

This was my first time listening to a Lucy Dacus project. I’m a huge Phoebe Bridgers fan though, as Punisher is one of favorite albums ever, so I was immediately intrigued to listen to this after hearing she was in a group with Phoebe Bridgers ... read more

Supertartory
100

I’ve actually been doing pretty well recently, mentally at least. Things have been going well, I’ve been meeting with friends, I’ve been trying to do better things for my mental health, and while I do have down days, for the most part I’m really good! It’s a huge improvement from just a couple months ago when I was on suicide watch by my mother, so, what happened, what changed?

This is my first real exposure to Dacus’ music. While I have seen her around I ... read more

wyvey
87

I love this album it’s so fun to listen to and yet at the same time makes me so emotional. highlights for the album are definitely triple dog dare, brando, hot & heavy and first time. i can’t wait to see what dacus does next

80

just realised ive given all Lucy albums an 8, anyway this just like her other albums are really nice with very nice vocals with every track working together like her other 2. really enjoyed this one quite a bit and maybe more then her other 2.
fav tracks: cant pick lol

BradsWife34
88

I love lucy (not the sitcom)

Lucy Dacus could sing the hokey pokey to me, and I would think it is the best thing I have ever heard. The production on this album is insane. It pairs with her strong vocals and lyrics so well. Lucy deserves more recognition personally.
Favs: Please Stay, Triple Dog Dare, Brando
Skips: Partner in Crime

Purchasing Home Video from Amazon helps support Album of the Year. Or consider a donation?
Become a Donor
Donor badge, no ads + more benefits.
Advertisement

Track List

1Hot & Heavy
4:10
88
2Christine
2:33
81
3First Time
4:14
84
4VBS
3:56
83
5Cartwheel
3:24
79
6Thumbs
4:25
82
7Going Going Gone
3:13
81
8Partner in Crime
4:38
76
9Brando
3:00
83
10Please Stay
4:19
82
11Triple Dog Dare
7:44
90
Total Length: 45 minutes
Sign in to comment
1d
2w
6mo
11mo
2y


Added on: April 13, 2021