SOUR

by Olivia Rodrigo

* "SOUR" by Olivia Rodrigo feels very down to earth and grounded. It's reserved, laid-back, and tender. Everything can feel very emotional down to her painful vocal performances and the slow and somber production. It ultimately isn't masterful or eye-popping, and some songs are pretty boring, it remains an overall worthwhile experience by the end.

* You can't really tack any one sound to this album but it commonly features minimal folksy songs where the vocals take center stage, and the odd Pop Rock song that pack a bit more punch. Overall though there is a vast amount of sounds hit on this album which is why there's so many subgenres listed.

* None of the instrumentals I really find to be stellar. The rock bits on here sound very tacky and "kid's show" sounding; shallow and drenched in cheese. A lot here just didn't pique by interest either for no particular reason other than it not connecting with me. The singer song writer stuff is what I enjoyed the most, but that shows that the instrumental elements aren't the strong suit of the album.

* The through line of the album is a relationship that has gone arry, and how the speaker navigates feelings of betrayal and loss. It hits a lot of emotional cores for me, the feeling that you are the only one who really cared, the feeling that giving it your all isn't enough, these moments on the album moved me a lot.

* The lyrics are very on the nose but I think in a way that can be considered a strength when executed correctly. It sounds very teenager-like, of course in the topics but the juvenile nature of the delivery and words themselves. It's not to say they are immature, but that it is more relatable to that audience. For me, it definitely felt relatable despite never being in a breakup, (let alone a relationship to break up,) these factors made it speak to me more than I expected.

* Throughout the songs her vocal performance grew on me. I didn't care for it and even found it grating at times. It is until I realized the passion and pain in her voice as she sung about the gut-wrenching topics that the beauty of the performances set in. A recently emergered whisper style of singing also adds certain lo-fi kind of intimacy, both of these styles went hand in hand really well with the aforementioned themes.

* It is an overall fine record, you will find something here because even though the pieces themselves won't give you that much, there's so much else here. Almost anyone can feel for the speaker in these songs for the pain in the lyrics and performances for its down-to-earthness. It can be cheesy at times, definitely, but if you like the taste of cheese then this is a fine album.