Tag Archives: album review

Album Review: Good Riddance by Gracie Abrams

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Good Riddance is singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams’ debut album, released on February 24, 2023; and written and produced by Abrams and Aaron Dessner. The album is 12 songs, and on June 16 Abrams released a deluxe edition of the album, which features 4 bonus tracks. Good Riddance is an album unlike most I have personally listened to; and Abrams’ raw, brutally honest songwriting shines through on this album as she reflects on past relationships with others and herself.

Further, many of my favorite songs and albums are written from the perspective of a person who has been the victim of a situation or relationship, the “good guy.” On the other hand, the songs on Good Riddance are written from the other perspective—from the person who has made the mistakes. I really love this fresh perspective, as it was really interesting to hear the raw and honest thoughts of someone who has done someone else wrong through the art of music. Following are a summary of some tracks on Good Riddance:

Track 1: “Best” – a song in which the narrator admits that they were not the best partner in their past relationship. Through her stinging lyrics, Abrams takes accountability for the mistakes she made and the faults she had throughout the relationship.

Track 2: “I know it won’t work” – a song about going through a tough time with someone and wanting to be with them again despite knowing that it won’t work. Though the narrator and the aforementioned person have cut ties, they still linger in each other’s minds, “never really leaving.”

Track 5: “I should hate you” – a song about being unable to hate someone despite how deeply they have hurt you. Throughout the song, the beautiful lyrics echo the way the narrator loves someone so much that they cannot hate them and would even go back to them after all the hurt.

Track 11: “The blue” – the only love song on Good Riddance, where Abrams sings about the inescapable connection between her and someone she has fallen in love with. In the song, she sings that they “came out of the blue” unexpectedly, and she couldn’t help but fall for them.

All in all, Good Riddance was an honest, emotionally intense, and beautifully written album. I absolutely loved it and would recommend it if you already love Gracie Abram’s music or are looking to try something new.

Happy listening!

-Lam T.

Five Seconds Flat- Lizzy McAlpine (Album Review)

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Lizzy McAlpine is a young musician who was born in Pennsylvania and started writing music when she was in 6th grade. Her second alternative album that she released in 2022 is called, Five Seconds Flat, which consists of 14 tracks and features from FINNEAS, Ben Kessler, Jacob Collier, and Laura Elliot. This album describes the loss and deep thoughts that go through her mind and the love that she has always imagined for herself along with hypothetical thoughts.

The song, Ceilings, became very popular overtime and depicted the idea of a nonexistent relationship feeling like a movie. Towards the beginning of the song she sings, “it feels like the start of a movie I’ve seen before” and at the end of the song she sings, “it feels like the end of a movie I’ve seen before” coming back to reality and realizing it was all a fantasy. A relatable lyric in the song is “I would say all of this but I don’t want to ruin the moment” which can mean trying to not to risk anything yet making memories.

My personal favorite on the album is track 11, Hate to Be Lame (feat. FINNEAS) which is a mellow and suspenseful song. In this song she admits her true emotions and feelings to others. She also describes how she makes excuses for herself in certain situations, “tell myself it’s not the right time or something dumb”. My favorite part is halfway through the song when the beat starts to pick up, and the volume of their voices increases, ending with FINNEAS’s deep voice and joining the two together in harmony to wrap up the entirety of the song.

All of her songs on the album are unique with different meanings and even though the songs Ceilings and Hate to Be Lame (feat. FINNEAS) are amazing and popular (in my opinion) her other songs have more to offer and can be relatable and nostalgic. I very much recommend this album and her music in general!

Everything I Know About Love Album Review

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On August 26, 2022, Laufey, a singer-songwriter from Iceland, released her first full lengthened album, Everything I Know About Love. The album consists of many songs that have different meanings varying from growing up and being a hopeless romantic. The album consists of her most popular songs such as Valentine and Fragile.

I personally love all of the songs but my favorite song in this album for now would be Slow Down and Everything I Know About Love. One of my favorites is Slow Down because the song sounds really calming to me but I especially love the whole message of the song, which is to enjoy the present and cherish it and slow down. I love the message of Slow Down because I spend most of my days doing the same things over and over again and I always wait for things to end and never really cherish the present and my moments. My other favorite song is Everything I Know About Love because the song sounds more upbeat than the other songs and I just love how the song sounds. 

Overall I really loved the album Everything I Know About Love by Laufey and it’s definitely one of my favorite albums. Although it may not be the style of music most people would like, I definitely recommend at least trying to listen to the album or one of Laufey’s songs at least once.

Emails I Can’t Send Fwd: Sabrina Carpenter (Album Review)

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Sabrina Carpenter is mostly known as an actress starring in the Disney show, Girl Meets World, and other movies such as Adventures in Babysitting, Work It, Clouds, and Tall Girl. Yet, most aren’t aware she is a musician at heart. She has released 5 albums and her newest one, in my opinion, is her best one yet.

The original album that was released in 2022, Emails I Can’t Send, consisted of 13 tracks in the pop genre. Leading up after the album, she went on tour and I was lucky enough to go to one of her concerts and sing along to all of her songs. But a couple months after she released the album, she came out with 4 more songs and added them to the album and included the word fwd: to the end of the album title. Emails I Can’t Send Fwd: consists of mellow yet upbeat songs with relatable lyrics. Her most popular song on the album is called, Nonsense, grew in potential and aspired to others through social media. It is now frequently played on the radio and has become well known by most. Sabrina talks about her love interest and how she tried to change for them, or lost herself in the process, along with other emotions. Some of the tracks and the meaning behind them are listed below:

Read Your Mind (track 3): This upbeat song compliments the idea of not being able to express one’s emotions or making up their mind. The frustration of giving mixed signals in a relationship and contradicting between their words and actions and their overall stance between their significant other.

How Many Things (track 7): This song recalls good memories in a relationship or friendship and putting the effort in. Giving more attention towards the person, compared to the other. One of her lyrics states, “I feel myself falling further down your priorities” expressing the loss of interest.

Feather (track 15): This newer song includes the sense of letting something go. Feeling the weight lifted off your shoulders and not having that person or thing on your mind anymore creating the idea of “feeling light as a feather”.

I would definitely recommend this album as each song is unique and different and dives deeper into Sabrina’s life.

Album Review: Your City Gave Me Asthma by Wilbur Soot

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You may know Wilbur from his presence on various social media platforms, such as Twitch and YouTube. But did you know that besides gaming, he also makes music?

I found this album when it was released back in 2020. From the first listen, I was hooked. The opening track, Jubilee Line, is such a creative song. I think it is such a great opening track to this amazing album.

The second track, Saline Solution, is so catchy in my opinion. I feel like the vocals are very raw and intimate. I love the guitar solo in the beginning, I feel as though it really grasped my interest.

My favorite song on the album, Your Sister Was Right, is so emotional; not only to me, but to the artist as well. The lyrics are so truthful and I really like that in a song. I definitely listen to the song at least twice a day because I love it so much.

As someone who constantly has their AirPods in, this album is always in my daily rotation of music. No matter the day, the mood, or the weather, I will always enjoy this album. I would rate it a 10/10. If you are into the indie or shoegaze genres, I would definitely recommend!

Album Review: Ocean Blvd by Lana Del Rey

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In March of 2023, singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey her ninth studio album, titled Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd. This Americana-pop and alternative pop album includes collaborations with artists Jon Batiste, Bleachers, Father John Misty, Tommy Genesis, SYML, and Riopy. Ocean Blvd (short for Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd) has what is perceived to be a more mature, conversational, and raw lyrical style compared to Lana’s previous albums; and in addition to its pop style, includes influences of folk, gospel, and trap.

In Ocean Blvd, Lana Del Rey’s songs touch on themes including family, grief, loneliness, heartbreak, and growth. Following are a summary of a few tracks on Ocean Blvd:

Track 1: “The Grants” – a tribute to Lana’s family and beloved ones on this song as she recounts her memories with them.

Track 8: “Kintsugi” – a song about Lana’s grief and growth from the death of her family members. She relates this to kintsugi, the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the broken parts with lacquer dusted with gold, silver, or platinum.

Track 13: “Margaret (feat. Bleachers)” – written about Lana’s longtime collaborater Jack Antonoff’s fiancé, Margaret Qualley. On this beautiful love song, Antonoff is featured as part of the band Bleachers.

Track 15: “Peppers (feat. Tommy Genesis)” – a fun and catchy track sampling Canadian rapper Tommy Genesis’s song “Angelina.”

In conclusion, Did you know there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd ended up being one of my favorite albums! It has a very mature sound and a variety of unique sounds on each song. If you enjoy any of Lana Del Rey’s music, I would definitely recommend this album for you!

-Lam T.

Album Review: SOUR by Olivia Rodrigo

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I’m sure you have all heard the very popular song, driver’s license, by Olivia Rodrigo. But have you listened to the entirety of her album? I think it is one that definitely deserves a review post.

The opening track, brutal, isn’t necessarily one of my favorite songs to listen to. I do love the fact that it starts off strong and I think it makes a great introduction to the album. It is definitely relatable to me, and I’m sure it is to other teenagers as well.

The second track on the album, traitor, is definitely a very well-thought out, emotional song. But, I personally think it has been overplayed. When it first became popular, I heard it all the time on the radio and on various social media platforms. I do love the song, I think it is amazing, but it is way too overplayed.

The tenth track, favorite crime, is one of my all-time favorite songs by Olivia. It is so incredibly emotional and you could tell that the story behind the lyrics is very personal. The bridge of the song has to be my favorite part of the song, it really sums up the purpose of the song.

Overall, I rate this album an 8/10. It isn’t something I would listen to on a daily basis, but I do listen to it once in a while. I do enjoy most of the tracks on it, if not all, but some are definitely over played. If you like heartbreak-pop, I would definitely recommend this to you.

Album Review: The Queen Is Dead by the Smiths

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British music during the mid-1980s was quite synth-heavy as new wave was the genre that defined the decade. However, a backlash against this style of music would occur which can be seen in bands like the Smiths. The Smiths came out of Manchester in the mid-1980s and released four pretty popular albums, including The Queen Is Dead, their best album in my opinion.

The album cover of The Queen Is Dead

The Queen Is Dead can simply be described as an indie or alternative rock album with its sound being a fusion of the rock music of the 1960s and contemporary post-punk music. It features Morrissey’s melancholic lyrics paired with his unique voice and Johnny Mar’s compositions. Many of the songs are fairly sad as demonstrated by “There Is a Light That Never Goes Out”.

“There Is a Light That Never Goes Out” is a beautiful song about a man by his lover’s (or soon to be lover’s) side. The man wishes to stay by her side forever and even die beside her. “There Is a Light That Never Goes Out” is the Smiths’ signature song and one of my personal favorite songs of all time. With its synthesized strings, Morrissey’s voice, and Mar’s guitar, the song is just absolutely beautiful.

It would only be around a year later when the Smiths would break up. They would release another album not long after their breakup, but it’s not nearly as good as The Queen Is Dead in my opinion. The Queen Is Dead is a 10/10 album and you have to check it out!

Album Review: I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One

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Sometimes, we find our favorite songs in mundane experiences. Whether we get the recommendation of a lifetime from our friends, or we find a catchy song on the radio, the event is different for everyone. Still, we all have that one mind-altering experience with music. I first discovered Yo La Tengo through their heartwarming song titled “My Little Corner of the World.” After playing it on loop for hours on end, I finally listened to Yo La Tengo’s I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One, and I was shocked to find that this was more than a series of simple folk songs.

Album Cover Art for I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One by Yo La Tengo

I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One was released in 1997 by indie rock band Yo La Tengo. Most known for its various inspirations and genres, the album flips from acoustic folk-inspired tracks to glimpses of noise pop. For instance, tracks like “Autumn Sweater” and “The Lie and How We Told It” use catchy drums and blissful guitars to create homey, nostalgic tunes. Other tracks such as “Sugarcube” and “Deeper into Movies” use heavier guitars and distortions to take louder, rock-inspired approach. Despite these differences, Yo La Tengo masters each genre they tackle, and the end result is always interesting.

The most surprising track on I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One has to be “Center of Gravity.” Despite being the only bossa nova track of this project, it easily became my all time favorite song for its groovy percussions and different vocals. Still, each song in this project is different, so you never know what to expect once the track number changes. Yo La Tengo uses this unpredictable nature to their advantage. From beginning to end, I admired their musical variety instead of pushing it away. Even if you favor one genre over another, I guarantee you will find something to love about I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One. Give this album a shot!

Album Review: evermore (deluxe version) by Taylor Swift

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Taylor Swift. We all know her, or at least I would hope everyone knows who she is. Her career began back in 2006, when she was just sixteen years old. Her debut single, Tim McGraw, will always remain in the back of my head.

This album opens with the track, willow, which I’m sure many of you have heard at some point on the radio. It is not one of my absolute favorite songs on the album, but I don’t dislike it either. I think it is a very good introduction into the complex album of evermore.

The fifth song on the deluxe version, tolerate it, is one of my all time favorite songs by Taylor. The piano in the beginning just suits the lyrics so well and I enjoy it so much. The bridge of the song has to be my favorite part though. You can really hear the anger and emotion in her voice and I love it.

My all time favorite song by Taylor is on this album. The song happiness, is absolutely one of the best songs I have heard throughout my life. The lyrics are incredible and the bridge is absolutely amazing. The way the song starts of soft and then progresses into a more aggressive tone is just so clever to me.

In conclusion, I rate this album a 9/10. I love it overall, but there are a few songs that I wouldn’t listen to on a daily basis. I do recommend listening to this album, even if you’re not a fan of Taylor Swift; I can guarantee you will discover at least one song you enjoy.