Olivia Rodrigo just released GUTS not too long ago, so obviously I'll talk about her debut album first. It's been more than 2 years since SOUR dropped, and it was one of the biggest music moments on 2021, one that even I enjoyed quite a bit. It was cool to see a pop artist as mainstream as she is, intersect with rock even just a little bit, and top charts like it's nobody's business.
I remember when she blew up with drivers license, which was honestly a pretty good sad-vibes pop track, and it did deserve every listen it got but there's no denying that the virality of Tiktok played a part. Nevertheless, it led up to a highly anticipated debut album, one that was only spurred on by two more great singles.
SOUR is definitely a diverse listen for the pop world. The rock and pop-punk influences were something I greatly appreciated, but even outside of that, her pop sensibilities were evident in the kind of confessional songwriting that starred in most of her tracks. There was something very human about a someone of my age writing songs about things we care about at my age, and there's an endearing touch of what it's like to be young woven throughout these songs, maturity be damned. There's a reason this album resonated so strongly with the younger audience, to the point of massive critical acclaim and claiming various accolades.
SOUR has a strong focus on young love, decorated with succinct pop-based production and a tinge of angst poking through, especially with the louder tracks like brutal and good 4 u. The majority of the album resides in mainstream pop territory though, and despite the prominence of Tiktok in it's popularity, is not as affected by the tiktok music pitfalls as I expected. Some of these cuts sound like they would fit comfortably in the late 2000s or early 2010s pop scene, especially some of the deeper cuts.
It's not my favourite album of all time, but it's footprint is unmistakable and it is honestly one of the better pop albums of that year anyways. I had fun listening to it when it came out, and it's rare enough that I actually like and come back to any pop album, so this is definitely a plus. Despite the comparisons to pop contemporaries like Billie Eilish and Taylor Swift, I think it's pretty clear Olivia Rodrigo has made a name for herself, and if she hasn't already come into her own, she very would on her next album (spoiler alert: she does).
Rating: 7/10