Straight Line Was a Lie by The Beths

The New Zealand band The Beths has been a slow-burner for me. I haven’t heard their first two bands (despite critical acclaim), and while I did listen to their third album, 2022’s Expert in a Dying Field, I didn’t love it enough to place it in the Top 31 that year (although upon re-listening, I clearly made a mistake). I have even seen the band perform three times (2022 THING festival; opening for the Death Cab / Postal Service reunion tour that same year; and headlining their own tour this past November). It was that November performance, paired with the August release of they fantastic fourth album, Straight Line was a Lie that finally saw them break through my musical barrier into the “Bacon Review Says This is a Great Band” promised land.

The four-piece is made up of bassist Benjamin Sinclair, drummer Tristan Deck, guitarist and producer Jonathan Pearce, and principal songwriter, guitarist, and lead singer Liz Stokes. Pearce and Stokes have been romantic partners since shortly after the band formed back in 2014, where they all met at the University of Aukland, studying jazz.

You may notice that the Beths are not jazz. They fall squarely in the jangly indie rock mold. You can watch the videos for “No Joy” (and “The Beths Make: No Joy) and “Metal” (and “The Beths Make: Metal”) to get a sense of where the band typically falls. The band has release one more demo video, for the “Take.”

“Mother, Pray For Me” (the song featured above) is a departure from that norm, with Stokes performing the song solo, quietly. It is such a gorgeous song, all about Stokes’ relationship with her Indonesian mother (Stokes’ parents moved to Auckland when she was four). The poetic lyrics don’t paint a straightforward picture of their clearly complicated relationship, but the rawness of Stokes’ voice and the repetitive nature of the lone guitar lead you down a darkly emotional alley.

After the 2022 tour ended, Stokes apparently fell into a deep depression. On top of that, her body was failing her through undiagnosed Graves’ disease, which causes hyperthyroidism, leading to irritability, insomnia, and physical symptoms like heat sensitivity, shifts in one’s menstrual cycle, frequent bowel movements, and bulging eyes. Stokes took SSRIs for the depression, which helped greatly and pulled her back from the brink. And then figuring out the Graves’ disease, and then medically treating it, has led Stokes to a much better place overall.

Straight Line was a Lie chronicles the last three years for Stokes – the emotional depths explored on the album are likely what drew me in most (despite not having gone deep on the lyrics). The rawness comes through, via Stokes’ up-front voice and the beauty of the band playing behind her. At the show in November, the band has a playfulness that feels very Kiwi to me. It’s an approachable-ness that immediately draws you in, and makes you feel like the band is your new friend. When Stokes performed “Mother” solo in the middle of the set, we all held our breath. The collective exhale that came at the end of the song was full of elation. (You, too, can experience the majesty of this song and the band via their KEXP set from 2025.)

And that’s what Straight Line can do for you. On the surface, it’s all indie rock happiness. Underneath, there’s an earnestness that brings a level of emotion to the whole thing, it’s impossible not to love it. I recommend you check it out right now.