Holy god WHAT?

Have I been missing out this whole time? I have never checked this band out before, this is my first time with them and I’m really, really impressed. This somehow manages to both be soul-freeing dreamy music and poppy ear candy at the same time. It’s like being at a busy, sprawling beach whilst feeling so relaxed and at peace.

The vocals are incredible, sounding constantly enchanting and matching the sound texture of each track by being perfectly drowned (shanty, ... read more

it’s just uninteresting. I get sick of the beat very quickly and for a song trying to be edgy it’s just so sleepy and not tasteful at all

GO STRAIGHT TO DYING STAR. DO NOT PASS GO. DO NOT COLLECT $200

Dying Star is the best song here by an absolute landslide, the rest isn’t quite as awful as I expected but some of the beats are horrible and the energy can be really off-putting. Admittedly on a few tracks we get some tasteful club production but on more tracks it’s a “how edgy can we possibly be” challenge that really just doesn’t make for good music.

It’s all worth it at the end tho when she ... read more

Sorry guys, I don’t get it. I don’t get what makes this so appealing…

Not to say there isn’t good stuff here. There is the occasional ear worm and some nice dream pop elements mixed in with the disco. The vocal performances really do nothing for me though. They do give off a horny vibe I guess but that’s a vibe I’ve never seen that much appeal in (with a couple specific exceptions).

This album also desperately needed more joyful energy to it or more ... read more

“When did it end? All the enjoyment
I’m sad again, don’t tell my boyfriend
It’s not what he’s made for
What was I made for”

ouch.

As soon as that outro hits I just want it to go on forever. Such an amazing soundscape holy god.

Even coming from someone who loved FTPOF, I love how much life this has. It doesn’t lose the emotion and melodic touch of that album and it adds in a real punch instrumentally. The build on the last chorus before the second half of the song sounds amazing too, it’s enough to hint at what’s coming, but not enough to take away from the very high lyrical quality.

And perhaps the ... read more

EDIT: 75 -> 87 (lmao I fell for it. It’s too fun)

Original Review:

Releasing this song tonight, it’s a bad idea right?

Nah it’s actually not, I like this. The lyrics are silly but I think Olivia knew that this was just meant to be a fun song, they’re lyrics to laugh with and scream along to. The guitar riffs and her vocal delivery definitely help push the fun vibe. There is a lot of energy and personality to this song.

I will say though, I don’t consider ... read more

Will need another listen or two to fully decipher this. Score will probably go up even more.

On first listen… holy fuck this is beautiful

I wish I discovered this in 2020.

I first listened to Chinese Satellite on January 1, 2021 after seeing it praised somewhere on Instagram. All of a sudden, all of my subconscious feelings about my lack of religious faith, pessimism about the future, etc. had been intellectualised to me, all thrown together over multiple gorgeous melodies and otherworldly instrumentation.

Browsing through this album afterwards before eventually listening to it in full brought me many more awakenings. So many ... read more

I have to admit, this is not usually my style/genre at all but the flow is literally ear candy I couldn’t help but enjoy it. I can’t emphasise that enough, this song combines genres I’ve been a vocal hater of yet just on the flow it had my head moving 😭

Have to praise the production too, the aesthetic is established enough to where the song feels genuinely dreamy and separates itself from other tracks I consider boring.

Once again I can’t believe I like this but ... read more

feels like every artist has a song called Kaleidoscope now

that being said this song is really beautiful

pop perfection

Overhated for sure, very listenable and actually gets good in moments. It is, however, a little exhausting. The songs are essentially all the same style and I think the reason it doesn’t always really come off is due to the vocals. The delivery of some of the lyrics makes for some cringe moments in songs which would otherwise be genuinely good. There is some interesting meta-commentary here too but it’s not enough to make up for the moments that feel way too forced and vague. And ... read more

this is really nice

Unsettling in a beautiful way is the best way I can describe this, I really like it haha. It feels like the set of sounds you would hear in purgatory, waiting to see if you get transported to heaven or hell

I love you, ain’t that the worst thing you ever heard?

BC,NR if the songs didn’t drag on into oblivion

what better way to celebrate getting taylor swift tickets than to listen to uzi

Bloodsucker, fame fucker!

Similar to SOUR the vocal performance is what really stands out here, I love the way this track progresses instrumentally too, it adds to the emotional power of it all. Good start to this new era of Olivia!

It’s hard to sum up such an ethereal yet genuine experience in a few words. So I’m not gonna try to do that. Hayden, also known as Ethel Cain, didn’t try it either here. She continually threw us 7+ minute tracks instead of sugarcoating it all. And I won’t sugarcoat one specific and pretty wild way that this album has impacted my life (more on that later).

Family Tree (Intro) introduces us to some of what we’ll be hearing. Internal battles with religion, slow but ... read more