SOUR Review

 

    If you would have told me that Olivia Rodrigo would be the girl at the top of the world right now with all eyes on her, I would have assumed you were completely insane. Rodrigo was frankly a nobody even considering her mild stardom from the Disney+ High School Musical series, even though she was brooding with untapped potential, we weren’t sure just how far that would take her. Olivia then dropped the mega-hit “driver’s license” and all of sudden she had metamorphosed into a superstar in the blink of an eye and the days were being eagerly counted down until her debut SOUR. This mysterious fascination eluded me because even though I couldn’t deny the somber catchiness of her debut single, the track was a painfully slow burning, piano driven ballad that was hindered by the modest chord progressions and the uninspired, awfully bland percussion loops. This record is the shining epitome of GenZ pop laced to the seams and even though the angst and edginess of the derivative and generic thematic tendencies play out how we would largely expect, Olivia Rodrigo takes a few unexpected and exciting turns that prove to mostly enhance her melancholic and fuming breakup tunes. Clearly heartbreak and relationships are the name of the game on here and even though this project reeks of artistic textures from the likes of Taylor Swift’s 1989 and others of that ilk, SOUR still manages to entice with a collection of restless generational love anthems, even if a majority of the thematic tropes, sonic textures and stories sound a little too familiar.

    The ideas of love and young, flawed relationships among Rodrigo and others are central to the scopes and aesthetics of this record. Even though this is predictable and a completely congenital of her generation, we can’t direct too much animosity towards her because she is young and these experiences are the ones deemed as crucial and most transformative so far. Her mindset, vibrant angst and emotional edginess are propelled to the forefront out of the gate on the cut “brutal,” which is introduced by some euphonious and lustrous strings but ditched out of the blue for grungy guitar riffs, raucous drums and wild distortion. This punk rock take on the trauma of herself and her peers is illustrated in a picturesque fashion, with lyrics such as “Cause who am I if not exploited, And I’m so sick of being seventeen, Where’s my fuckin’ teenage dream.” This trend of chronicling high school drama continues on the track “trauma,” fittingly titled as Olivia airs her grievances on a love interest who “betrayed” her. The track is steeped in a cinematic serenity driven by a mirage of grand chords, but even though the vocals and sonic layers are lovely, the cut is drawn out long past its lifespan and the overall message implodes and fizzles out as the song drags on. More tracks on here decide to take the themes of the record in a more somber, delicate setup with cuts like “1 step forward, 3 steps back” supported by dreamy piano melodies and some gorgeous vocals from Rodrigo, especially towards the tail end of the track.

    The innocence, passion and rash decisions that come along with Olivia’s youth do happen periodically on the record, as some of her vocal melodies, harmonizing and production synergy meld beautifully into vibrant pop aesthetics, or they regress towards a splattering of contemporary pop qualities with no real focus or structured energy. “déjà vu” is an excellent example of her ability to grace unorthodox pop instrumentals, as she glides over starry keys and reverberating distortions that are distinguished thanks to some brilliant percussion that is more refreshing than anything else on this record. “good 4 u” is a welcome bright spot as well, introduced by a angst-filled bassline and rounded off with gleaming punk rock guitar riffs. The hook on this cut is catchy as all hell and really exhibits the abilities of Olivia to have fun and embrace her own quirky insecurities and emotional exuberance, as she so eloquently puts “I’ve lost my mind, I’ve spent the night, Crying on the floor of my bathroom, But your so unaffected I really don’t get it, But I guess good for you.” As the rest of the record progresses though, the soundscapes and atmospheres tend to become jaded and bland with exclamations from Olivia that don’t carry the same weight as some of the other cuts earlier on the record. “enough for you” and “favorite crime” are both acoustic laced slow jams that albeit some euphonious effects and misty vocals from Olivia, offer only boring messages that aren’t helped by their similarities and drawn out natures. “happier” and “jealousy, jealousy” are ending cuts ushered in by their charismatic basslines and elevated by other spacy, emphatic instrumentals. These two are sadly brought down by some lazy vocal effects and some joyless, uninspired lyrics from Rodrigo. There are of course some catchy portions on these few tracks and I don’t think they are wholly awful, but the execution on the end of this record could have used a little more refinement and inspiration on Olivia’s part. “hope ur ok” closes out this debut record and it does so in a satisfying manner. Olivia’s singing is impassioned and immediately grabs your attention, supported by melodies of sorrowful keys and striking guitar chords that emblazon the closer with a virtuous harmonization. The message is clearly hard for Olivia to tell, but her vulnerability is admirable and we can tell just how heartbroken she is, especially when she radiates “Does she know how proud I am she was created, With the courage to unlearn all of their hatred, We don’t talk much but I just gotta say, I miss you and I hope you’re are okay.”

    This record definitely had its issues, whether from the glaring, overused pop-rock elements or the dilution of Olivia’s theme through her own inexperience, it still managed to surprise in ways that were completely unexpected. Even though some of her emotional traumas are clearly just teenage rebellious energy or taken a little too seriously in terms of their actual damaging nature, some of the cuts on here are fantastic and offer a glimpse into Rodrigo’s untapped potential. With a little more experimentation and a less convoluted message, the next project from her should be even better, as SOUR is a solid debut from one of pop’s most promising young artists.

 

 

Score: 6/10