Sour, the album written by Olivia Rodrigo after a publicized breakup, was a smash hit. It contained hits like “Driver’s License,” “deja vu,” and “good 4 u” that dominated social media discussions for months, something that still holds true today due to its solidity in the Billboard 100. I remained skeptical of the album’s popularity until I decided to give it a listen myself. Olivia Rodrigo, known for her role in “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series,” poured her heartache and pain into a ‘musical diary’. While the approach in the album theme isn’t entirely unique, she managed to create a distinctive sound by blending impassioned screeching and singing with the lyrical depth of a “sad girl.” While the lyrics might not resonate with everyone, the raw emotions are palpably woven into the music. This concoction catapulted her to the status of one of the youngest artists to achieve four times platinum status and amass over 50 million Spotify listeners.
That’s not to suggest Olivia Rodrigo falters in any way on this album. Her voice echoes even more powerfully in this record, bar none. Rodrigo has unearthed deeper heartbreak, more profound pain, and even addresses falling in love with gay men. Yet, the true essence of the album lies in her rapid ascent to fame and the emotions behind them. Lyrics like, “Got your whole life ahead of you, you’re only nineteen. But I fear that they already got all the best parts of me,” from Teenage Dream, hint at a sense of nostalgia for her earlier work, as if she believes her previous album was her pinnacle. She grapples with the fear that her current album won’t gel with anyone and that she has already peaked. This undercurrent of anguish entwines through every song, infusing the album with a sense of apprehension about what lies ahead. It transforms the album from a typical teenage “sad girl” narrative into a more universally relatable story of facing the unknown.
While Olivia Rodrigo undoubtedly strengthens the thematic thread running through her album, she also disrupts it. In her own words to the New York Times, “[I’ve] always loved rock music and always wanted to find a way to make it uniquely mine, to infuse it with femininity, and to convey vulnerability and intimacy.” Rodrigo’s prodigious vocal talents serve her fiercely in her confrontation with the rock, even if she sometimes swerves .‘Guts’ doesn’t quite veer into the realm of rock; it remains a pop album at its core. This longing for a rock-inspired sound does give rise to tracks like “get him back!” which, while a good song in itself, feels somewhat out of place and disrupts an otherwise seamless listening experience. It may sour some people looking to see her transform her sounds. Sorry to break it to those who want a rock album, you were given a great pop album.
Rodrigo has sharpened her voice, pinned down her emotions, vastly improved her song mixing, and hasn’t fallen down the sophomore album hole as many others behind her have. Even so she is fearful as many of us are. She wants to impress, she wants to scream, she wants to be heard. She doesn’t want to be held down by standards. She’s relatable, but yet intricate. Her feelings may feel conflicted, but her album is not. ‘Guts’, in its search to be something that it may not be, tumbles down. It gets back up each time, with new ideas and sounds that feel refreshing and different.