That casual interest turned into genuine anticipation with the release of this albums lead single, vampire. The song initially starts as a more mature parallel to her breakout song Drivers Licence. Both are slow piano ballads lamenting a shitty ex after a break up. vampire has a more 'classic' feel to it off the bat and Olivia's perspective is a bit less teenage melodrama and more emotionally raw, but both songs start off fairly similar. But as vampire progresses, it develops into a wildly different beast. The pace picks up with every verse-chorus cycle, the drum beat kicks in, and by the end of the song, it's more glam rock showstopper than piano pop ballad. That quality is present throughout the entire album, ideas aren't repeated twice, rather built upon and permutated to create some incredibly catchy and replayable songs. Second single, bad idea right? also demonstrates this with how the super catchy backing vocals on the chorus never stay the same each time it rolls around, starting off very clean and 'poppy' and becoming increasingly chopped up and processed throughout the song. The song is so damn fun, as Olivia sings about a one-night stand with a former flame that all her friends would say is a 'bad idea'. It also features a fuzzed out bluesy guitar solo outro, which is about the last thing I would expect from a big single from a major pop artist.
The whole first half of the record is exceptional, opening up with all-american bitch, a very Avril Lavigne-esque pop punk blowout about the pressure to be polite and permissible and 'not a bitch' that young women face growing up. The track is very dynamic, alternating between these quaint acoustic sections and brash in your face punky parts. Rodrigo outright screams towards the end, which again is such a brave choice that I just wouldn't expect from a record from a Disney backed pop act. It also has a brilliant transition into bad idea right?. lacy is an acoustic singer-songwriter tune that gives off more Lorde vibes and even as someone who is clearly not the target audience for the song, it really hits hard. the song personifies the beauty and personality standards imposed upon girls as the titular character of the song, Lacy (or that's at least how I take it). It's not about the systems that create these standards, but the weird obsession with the idea of a perfect person 'that must exist' that it creates in people. It's a really unique and multilayered take on the topic.
My first thought when hearing ballad of a homeschooled girl was "This sounds like pixies", but considering the themes of the record, Olivia's general influences and the fact that she's brought them on tour with her, Kim Deal's following band Breeders is a better comparison. The bouncy baseline, the soft-loud dynamics, the misfit / outcast lyrics just scream late 80s / early 90s indie and alt rock. I did find it a little jarring initially as in interviews and across the rest of the record Olivia comes across so self assured and confident, but regardless the song is an absolute banger and so god-damn catchy. The first half closes out with making the bed, the first time the record really slows down. The song is a really well written piano slowburn about self sabotage. Its clever and mature, and I really like it.
The second half isn't quite as consistent, but there are some really high high-points on it. Logical is a song I feel kind of mixed on. The song has moments of some really great lyricism (the bridge is brutal - pardon the pun) and Olivia's performance is so raw and emotional, but it is also one of the more straightforward piano pop ballads on the record and does start to run its main hook of "love isn't logical" into the ground by the end of the song. Similarly, lyrically the grudge hits like a truck, but musically its probably the most forgettable song on the album. pretty isn't pretty didn't initially leave much of an impression on me, with a pretty run of the mill new wave instrumental and lyrics tackling women's beauty standards which I thought were covered much better by lacy earlier in the record. However, I'm such a sucker for that kind of style and Olivia's voice suits it so well it's grown on me a lot.
Nestled in between these songs is two really great power pop breakup tunes, the first being get him back!. Olivia details the childish desire to hurt back the person who hurt you in a really self aware and tounge-in-cheek way. The chanted chorus and deadpan delivery are a lot of fun. love is embarrassing is even catchier with its driving baseline and booming hook, "Cause now it don't mean a thing, God love's fucking embarrassing" Olivia wails at the top of her voice. The inflections she puts on during the back end of the song just make it for me, they're unrestrained and kind of batshit. The closer, teenage dream, is also really solid, and a great way to close up the records themes. The song is a slowburn piano ballad that blossoms into a rapturous finale, where Olivia unfurls her insecurities regarding growing older and the stress of expectations. "What if they got all the best parts of me?" she asks, which is something everyone growing up can relate to regardless of whether your a pop susperstar or not - the idea of 'what if life is already as good as it gets and its all downhill from here?".
GUTS is a really adventurous and incredibly well written pop record. It doesn't pin itself in a box of following the trends and is better off for it. It's clever and witty, and has a lot of depth to it. I think Olivia is going to go on to do some really great things in the pop sphere and GUTS is definitely the first of them.
Top Tracks: all-american bitch, bad idea right?, vampire, lacy, ballad of a homeschooled girl, making the bed, get him back!, love is embarrassing, pretty isn't pretty, teenage dream
8/10
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