Album Reviews6.9/10
Lorde Trades Urgency for Calm on Solar Power, and Only Sometimes Wins the Bet
A record of stillness: Lorde's third work trades tumult for calm, its finest hours proving her spirit yet, its middle wafting like idle fog.
CLAY TRIBUNE / THE ARCHIVE
Tag: pop music
Album Reviews8.3/10
Harry’s House Review: Comfort as Craft, and Styles at Ease in His Own Fame
A record of comfort, not spectacle: Harry Styles settles into ease across 13 songs, style abounding where substance sometimes fails.
Album Reviews8.4/10
Life’s a Beach: easy life’s Debut Earns Its Warmth by Admitting the Cold Underneath
An album that pairs sunlit melody with private doubt and quiet dread, mostly succeeding at a hard task.
Album Reviews8/10
Chromatica: Lady Gaga’s Return to the Dance Floor — 8/10
A dance-floor tale of pain turned release, told through a wandering hook, a tearful song for two, and a hopeful close.
Album Reviews8/10
Manic: Halsey’s Unguarded Confession Fights Its Own Polish — 8/10
A pop singer's confession, told across sixteen tracks, some plain and true, some too polished to feel — a review of Manic.
Album Reviews8/10
Charli XCX’s Charli Makes Strange and Sweet Pop Work Together, Earning an 8/10
Charli XCX's third record weds strange production to sweet pop hooks, a wild once-in-a-while triumph of nerve and craft.
Album Reviews8.2/10
Billie Eilish’s Debut Trusts Silence as Much as Sound
A debut of quiet dread and bare basslines, wherein a young singer's fears become fit matter for song. Fourteen tracks, no waste.
Album Reviews8.6/10
thank u, next: Grande Turns a Hard Year Into Her Most Confident Record
A record of confession and control, twelve songs written in the raw middle of a hard season, weighed and reviewed.
Album Reviews7.1/10
reputation: Taylor Swift’s Darkest Gamble Mostly Pays Off
Taylor Swift's reputation trades her clean pop start for a darker, electronic turn — a record full of bite, revenge, and one quiet, tender moment.
Album Reviews8.7/10
Dirty Computer: Janelle Monáe Names Her Own Terms and Never Backs Down
A daring, joyous record naming its own truth, fourteen tracks of proud, personal song.
Album Reviews7.2/10
44 Years On, Six Thriller Tracks Still Earn Their Keep — and Two Never Did
A weighing of Jackson's Thriller, note by note, shadow and rhythm together, told in a manner Poe himself might set to paper.