It must have been a surreal night at the Grammy Awards for boygenius, who earned wins in three categories. But what was truly surreal was the moment the trio ran to the stage to accept the Best Rock Performance trophy, all while the house band played Mr. Bungle’s wonderfully eccentric tune “Carousel.”
The bizarre moment happened during the “Premiere Ceremony,” which took place before the main nationally televised event (on which rock music is rarely, if ever, acknowledged). In presenting the Best Rock Performance category, Rufus Wainwright announced the winners as boygenius, who beat out Arctic Monkeys, Black Pumas, Foo Fighters, and Metallica for the award.
The Grammy band then kicked in to the Mr. Bungle song, and after a few moments, the members of boygenius — Lucy Dacus, Julien Baker, and Phoebe Bridgers — came running down the aisle to accept the award.
The fact that Mr. Bungle’s “Carousel” was playing was weird enough, but seeing the three boygenius members demonstratively sprinting to the stage in their matching white suits — a touching homage to the late, great Elliott Smith — made the scene look like something out of an old-timey movie.
Nonetheless, it kicked off a string of wins for boygenius, who not only won Best Rock Performance (“Not Strong Enough”) but also took home Best Rock Song (also for “Not Strong Enough”) and Best Alternative Music Performance (“Cool About It”).
Watch the fun moment in the X post or YouTube video (cued up to shortly before it starts) below, and see the winners in the other notable Grammy categories here.
Later this month, Mr. Bungle will launch a new run of tour dates that includes a leg of US shows in the spring. Tickets are available for purchase here.
MR BUNGLE LMAOOOO why is this in the Grammy band repertoire 💀💀💀 https://t.co/gMQnXn3Ka6
— Good Willsmith (@GoodWillsmith) February 5, 2024