A spiritual Lorde? A more coherent Bjork? A less gritty Icky Blossoms? The mind reels with attempts to contextualize the familiar-yet-exciting sound that Hernandez has crafted in this album.
The opening track, "Taffy", is a playful admonishment that feels like a sister to the second song, "But Sugar Is Sweet." The pair explore the dynamics of abuse and dependency with a candy metaphor through line that evokes that particular hollow craving of the early days when one escapes a bad situation. Initially, I was a bit confused by the abundant religious imagery in these two, as it felt like it confused the metaphor, but as I continued through the album, I came to understand that this is a defining trait of the piece as a whole.
This is an album about recovering from abuse, but it's also an album about Faith. And that makes sense, right? Few things shake our faith quite so vigorously as when we are forced to face ourselves post-relationship and ask those hard questions: Why did this happen? What role did I play in perpetuating it? Who do I want to become now? I don't get the sense that this album is grappling with the faith in a divine entity, per se, but rather using these images as a stand-in for a loss of faith in themselves and perhaps people more generally.
We're just going down the line right now, reader, so let me go ahead and highlight "Do I Have To Spell It" featuring Nassim. What a fun song, right up there with the big pop bangers of the 2010s, and god help me I'm such a sucker for hiphop, especially when I'm not expecting it. I'm not familiar with Nassim's work, but they were an excellent choice and really met the moment of this weird-yet-approachable tone that Hernandez creates, and I'm going to be repeating "I'm a girlboss in search of a gaslighter" to myself for some time to come.
And what is that song followed by? A little instrumental glitch hop interlude called "Finally". Each new turn this album takes is bizarre and I'm in love.
I can't just give you a breakdown of every track. That is, I think, not the assignment. It's worth noting, though, that "Must Be Some Love" is especially remarkable as it largely drops the core religious imagery here in the middle of the album, pulling away artifice and belting this incredibly vulnerable song that could still feel right at home in a club, bidding the underage girls with fake IDs and eyes wide with 25i to dance.
And now I know what you're asking: Is there a slow, sad reprise to the opening track? YOU'RE GOD DAMN RIGHT THERE IS! "And You Win" is a devastating follow up to "Taffy" that caught me completely off guard. Each line takes on new significance as Hernandez strips away much of the production and croons at the verge of tears. And yet that raw energy doesnt stop them from doing some fascinating things with their voice that really define the sound of this album.
What a treat to get to listen to this. Anyone who's ever wondered what Taylor Swift could do if she took a lot of designer party drugs ordered off the dark web from Amsterdam (a group in which I obvious count myself) is going to be delighted right from the jump. Olivia Hernandez has the chops to contend with any and all of the pop titans but with a boldness and artistic integrity that sets this work above and beyond what you're used to hearing on the radio.