Hello Weakness You Make Me Strong [Gold Vinyl]

Gracie and Rachel are magnetic fields: Opposites who attracted in high school and never looked back. One classically-trained, the other unconventionally taught, certainty fuses with the unknown in the modern baroque pop Gracie and Rachel have made ever since. The power of Gracie and Rachel’s particular alchemy—that of a secret language between musical sisters, with a preternatural melodic sensibility—has never been more potent or realized than on their sophomore record, Hello Weakness You Make Me Strong.

With more focus on billowing electronics and hints of dusky but sharply- defined baroque-pop cadences, Hello Weakness You Make Me Strong bursts open pristine emotionality and self-excavation. These ten bold, oceanic songs chart the crests and crashes of feeling and thinking that one might encounter in the process of perseverance, in working through uncertainty towards self-possession—towards clarity and empowerment.

“Teaming up as a force to do things we couldn’t do on our own,” is built into every note of Hello Weakness You Make Me Strong. The album documents the process of Gracie and Rachel giving themselves permission to trust their own vision. They channeled lessons from their label-head, Ani DiFranco, too, who has become a champion of Gracie and Rachel’s work and a guiding force — the duo has toured with her frequently as both an opening artist and as onstage collaborators. “In the music industry, you’re met with so many people telling you how you should sound,” Gracie reflects. “Ani is a huge inspiration to us to write that story ourselves.”

The duo sees their life’s work as a project of mutual empowerment, which has extended from their teenage years—playing open mics, practicing and giving concerts in Gracie’s living room—to their present career, one that has seen them release their debut album to acclaim from NPR (including a Tiny Desk Concert and several best of 2017 lists), Billboard, WFUV, Paste, and ready for their continued evolution together, headed confidently toward the unknown.

“It is such a pleasure to have Gracie and Rachel release their new album on Righteous Babe. Their ethereal and provocative songs are a cinematic addition to the RBR cadre of feminist artist/activists. They sing softly but carry a big stick.” — Ani

Tracklist:

1. Trust

2. Sidelines

3. Underneath

4. Stranger

5. Speak

6. Ideas

7. Floating

8. Listen

9. Undo

10. Around