I think I’m going to stop doing themed weeks. This started as cool thematic link between several albums I’d wanted to listen to already but grew into listening to several I wasn’t all that bothered about.
I have too many I do actually want to listen to and am getting impatient about. So expect things to (generally) become more random.
Week 4 will be probably be late as I’m on holiday on the Friday and over the weekend, so expect it to be posted sometime during the week after.
Sabrina Carpenter – Man’s Best Friend
Very pointed and sharp lyrically, with sarcastic lyrics aimed at the useless and lazy boyfriends that Sabrina keeps getting stuck with. It’s a deliberate stylistic turn to kitschy 80s synth pop (which feels a little derivative of Chappell Roan, something I’m not sure how I feel about, given Chappell’s taking her time) mixed with some country influence, something else that has also dominated the past couple years. It feels the most quintessentially 2025 thing I can imagine.
The country songs might be my favourite, actually, I really enjoyed Go Go Juice, a sing along binge drinking break up anthem. I think country suits Sabrina’s voice great and given her songwriting chops it feels like a winning combination, so I’d love to see her explore that more.
Other than that, it’s pretty funny that there’s a big catchy hit pop song called Manchild, with the refrain “fuck my life” in the chorus. I also love how House Tour sounds. The lyrics are a bit too silly for my taste, but the synths are so good and scratch my brain in the right way.
Go Go Juice
Tate McRae – So Close to What
This isn’t bad but if it was cut down by a third it’d probably be a better album. There’s a handful of good songs but just as many that are boring or feel like they’re going through the motions.
I’ve never properly checked out Tate but I liked you broke me first, which was what broke her into the mainstream. She’s clearly a talented performer and I can’t fault her work ethic and dedication (given she’s been posting music on YouTube for at least a decade). She’s had the misfortune of playing second fiddle to the bigger pop girls for at least 3 years at this point, but has gradually inched further into their territory and I’d argue you can’t skip over her anymore.
I liked this a bit but it felt a bit underwhelming and like it was always chasing a sound. Unlike Sabrina’s recent 70s/80s nostalgia this is full on Y2K. A lot of it felt like good, passable background noise, in a Drake-y way. I’m not sure if that’s just something they put in Canadian pop star food, maybe.
Probably the worst moment for me was when The Kid LAROI came on and I was convinced it was Post Malone until I checked my phone. He’s not someone I’ve kept up with either, so I can only assume that’s his new thing.
My favourite was either bloodonmyhands (with Flo Milli), which has some catchy 90s stuttering drum beats, or No I’m not in love. Pop choruses with big booming synth-y bass is a kryptonite for me and this one mostly delivers on that front.
My ears still think Tate McRae and her music sound like a fictional popstar from a Family Guy episode or a Netflix movie. Her sound is nostalgic but has the caveat of feeling like that dated idea of a popstar that you get in a TV episode. Her name even sounds made up to me.
That being said, you could do far much worse. I really don’t mind her being around. If you know her background, she’s an amazing dancer. So if she can manage to bring her music up to a similar level I think she’d be genuinely great. Or maybe she just needs to get worse at dancing?
No I’m not in love
Lady Gaga – MAYHEM
I did listen to this a lot last year already, but I thought it was a good fit to revisit it now. I would’ve listened to it more if I’d managed to get Gaga tickets, but oh well!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
For the most part, this is classic Gaga, dialled to the max. Coming back to it, I still feel mostly the same about it. It’s very hard to dislike it, but it does leave me slightly wanting. The industrial dance sound is really cool to see explored here but I don’t think it offers enough to feel truly new.
It’s at least interesting to revisit this style now that she’s later in her career and has established herself as an actress too. The over the top energy and personality comes off completely warranted given her lasting impact on pop culture, so it almost feels like a victory lap of sorts.
In my research for this, I found out that Zombieboy is a tribute to the late Rick Genest, better known as the guy with the skull tattoo in the Born This Way video, which I thought was touching.
It’s unfortunately capped off by Die With a Smile and I don’t think I can name an album with a more out of place song. It’s painfully obvious that it’s tacked on just because it was a monster hit. There’s worse songs like this, even if I don’t see the appeal in this one. It’s made worse that you get through most of the album just to hear Bruno Mars’ voice suddenly appear on a big soft rock ballad. It feels like a prank.
My favourite track is How Bad Do U Want Me. I really love Gaga’s voice in this and it’s a great emotional and intimate counterbalance to the attitude that dominates most of the album.
How Bad Do U Want Me
Addison Rae – Addison
Also techically a dancer, but this time from TikTok. A lot of people seemed unreasonably angry about Addison’s attempt at a pop career when she first tried at it. But it’s been a few years now and I think this is leaps better than Alex Warren, so if he’s a popstar then I don’t see why Addison can’t be.
I don’t know what I was expecting but it wasn’t this. It manages to sit at the exact middle point between lost late 2000s demo tape and late 2010s underground indie synthpop project. And I think that’s exactly what it’s going for.
Knowing her friendliness with Charli XCX, I had anticipated something hyperpop-adjacent. There’s pockets of that here and there but that’s not the overall style.
Most of these songs sound like music from dance scenes in a direct to DVD teens movie, the kind you vaguely remember and then can never find online. Or sometimes you do and it turns out it was some one off decade old release by a songwriter or it’s the one English song that a short lived Eastern European pop star put out in 2011.
The one song I did know going in was Diet Pepsi, which is still as catchy as ever and captures a nostalgic sexy vibe that is as cringeworthy as it is fun. Everybody wants to be Y2K popstars but nobody wants to be cheesy. Addison Rae seems to actually get that part and I think that’s awesome.
Diet Pepsi
Demi Lovato – It’s Not That Deep
I don’t know if this was deliberately trying to evoke 2010s dance pop, but this feels a lot more dated than everything else I’ve tried this week. It’s not really an issue, however, as for the most part the sound here is so refined and polished that I can’t really fault it.
There’s a nostalgia to it for me, as most of the songs evoke the 80s synthpop revival of the mid 2010s or the EDM influence that also dominated pop that decade. I feel like most of these songs should be soundtracking stylish, choreographed tech ads. Demi is really not taking any creative risks or doing anything new here, but there’s almost a laser focus on nailing this sound that I think is admirable and it’s kind of nice to see someone committing that rather than following newer pop trends.
It mainly falters for me with its clunky lyrics. This stings more in songs like In My Head, that are leaning more emotionally. The high points of the album are mostly in the heavy dance songs, with Demi’s great vocal ability and some stylised tuning making them sound like some cool clubbing robot commanding a dance floor.
I think the lyrics issue is true for a lot of the album, aside from the great closer, Ghost. It’s a pretty straightforward pop ballad but it sticks the landing lyrically with its themes around relationship anxiety and builds to this awesome electronic breakdown outro that feels like something Robyn would do.
There’s certainly nothing new here, but I think this is really a solid bit of dance pop, if that’s your thing. I definitely know a few people who love this exact sound that would be obsessed with an album like this.
Also, the songs and runtimes on these albums are sooooo short. I hate streaming 😡
Ghost
Miley Cyrus – Something Beautiful
Third former Disney star this week! Like Demi, I don’t think this is doing much new, but it’s a pretty solid album. I like how introspective the lyrics are and that’s certainly been highlighted to me after listening to the other albums this week. It’s also almost an hour long. I think the length is fine, but it really sticks out next to some of these other albums.
It’s mostly a straightforward pop and rock outing, with the usual amount of variety. I’m not super familiar with her albums but this style really suits her voice and writing. Miley’s voice sounds great here, as does her signature twang, and I think it goes hand in hand with her
A lot of the vocals are processed with a slightly echo-y effect on them. It’s a bit muddy at times and slightly grating but it also adds to the character. To me it sounds almost like she’s on stage at some small bar in the middle of nowhere. This adds a cinematic feel to it, also helped by an intro and a couple of interludes, with some spoken word at the very start of the album.
I didn’t mind it initially but those tracks are also placed somewhat sparsely and only on the first half of the album. I think there was a movie attached to this so maybe all of this concept fits better there. I could see this irritating me on repeated listens.
I liked the features here. Every Girl You’ve Ever Loved is this dance-y 80s throwback with big strings and a saxophone, plus spoken word vocals from supermodel Naomi Campbell. It’s a lot of campy fun and I like how the song breaks down towards the end.
Brittany Howard’s feature on Walk of Fame was good too, though admittedly I was hoping her contribution was bigger, given I love her voice. It’s really not bad though, her supporting vocals are integrated really well and she brings a lot to change up the sound.
The closer, Give Me Love, also stood out to me. It builds and then kind of just fades out, without a proper conclusion. It’s an interesting note to end on and packs a lot of feeling.
Every Girl You’ve Ever Loved
Doja Cat – Vie
I’ve never listened to a full length Doja project before but I liked this. There’s a good variety of rapping and singing here and Doja’s personality is still as strong as ever, which is nice to see.
There’s a ton of 80s influence here but it’s on the funkier side. Most of the songs have catchy basslines and there’s a handful of sax, typically with Doja switching between airy, soft sung vocals and snappy, fast rap verses. Stranger is a great showcase of this and probably my favourite on the album.
Songs like All Mine are almost straight funk entirely and they make me wonder what a full album like that would sound like, but also highlights the general issue I’ve always had with Doja. She throws some rapping in here and I’d probably prefer it without. Her style often feels like too much of a balancing act for me. In a lot of her hit songs I’d prefer if they were committed to going full pop, full R&B or full rap.
Most of the songs hit similar synth pop notes and get a bit samey. If I spent more time with it I’d probably find some more highlights.
Happy stood out for me because of its lyrics about loving someone so much that you let them do whatever they want. It’s maybe the saddest song on the album. It’s a total contrast to Doja’s strong personality on the other tracks and that makes it hit harder.
I also liked the SZA track, Take Me Dancing. This is their third collaboration (I think) and they’re still a great duo. It’s at the midpoint of the tracklist, which is fine, but it’s the only feature on the album so it has that effect where it feels a little out of place, despite the clear chemistry on the track itself.
Take Me Dancing
New* Song of the Week
Xiu Xiu – Dancing on my Own (Robyn cover)
*Technically this was released back in 2021 as part of Xiu Xiu’s fan subscription service, they’re now releasing a compilation of these covers that is out today
Reply