Some albums sneak up on you — next thing you know, they've claimed a space in both your heart and your playlist. Send a Prayer My Way is one of those albums. Julien Baker and TORRES (aka Mackenzie Scott) wander through the well-worn paths of country music, all while sketching their own queer map along the way.
Southern Roots, Queer Stories
Tennessee and Georgia — two different states, two different lives, one shared voice: authenticity. Julien and Mackenzie dive deep into themes like faith, sexuality, and the need to belong, all while gently asking us a bold question:
Is everything sacred reserved for cis-hetero narratives?
The answer is a big, unshaken no.
Tracks like "Tuesday", "Sylvia", and "Sugar in the Tank" feel like self-contained worlds. Desire, loss, yearning, acceptance — they echo through the warm tones of classic country instruments.
Like a Prayer, But Not Quite
Banjo, dobro, pedal steel — the usual suspects are all here. But this album isn't about technique. It's about feeling. You don’t just listen to it like, “I’m into country now.” It’s more like, “I found voices that understand me.”
In "The Only Marble I’ve Got Left", you feel the fragility of what’s left to hold onto. "Off the Wagon" gives you a musical sketch of emotional ups and downs, like a dirt road that never quite smooths out.
When Country Gets Queer
This album doesn’t just add a new sound to country — it gives it a new body. Right at the heart of masculine Americana, Baker and TORRES place something tender, vulnerable, and often unheard. And the most beautiful part? This isn’t rebellion. It’s a quiet, grounded declaration: “I’m here. And this is my music, too.”
What Stays With You
Close your eyes and you’ll hear it — the ghost of a church choir from far away, the shimmer of a banjo string that’s just a little too honest. You might not be praying, but some of these songs feel like someone is praying for you.
Send a Prayer My Way doesn’t just stretch the borders of country — it redraws the map entirely. Julien Baker and TORRES turn music into a kind of personal ritual.
