KJ, I have to admit to not being familiar at all with Lourde. Unfortunately South Park made her a punchline in my mind for far too long. Damn, I despise that show.
But since your AV is Claire, trashique art angel, my savior + goddess, I knew your taste was worth meeting a new pop mainstay (and all that carries with it, fandomz, music backlog, the myth-building that comes with pop scenez).
So it was a Melodramatic morning for me, and my first deep listen to any of her work. What's evident off the jump is that here you have the diaristic power-pop that keeps Karaoke powerful. Car commute or OG or shower singin' this made me feel how Frank Ocean's albums do, like I'm reading the most melodic confessions on the airwaves, soaring with strings and committed to honesty most of all. The Lourve is the sorta song that I already expect to end up singing to myself when all the roommates are out, but its hook/chorus definitely lacks the power of the album's openers. Hard Feelings' breakdown all the way into its siamese-sibling Loveless was my favorite explosion of sound, I think. Gosh, I am so ready for Grimes' new output. TayTay fkn WISHES she had a song that effectively combined trap drums with headvoice falsetto teasing the way Sober II does,
Green Light and Liability I vaguely recall playing in the car earlier this year, Spring, when those tracks were still singles,when some friends from Boston visited me in LA, and I am certain anthemic pop rings loudest when it strikes on nearly-forgotten moments. Pop anthems help us claim memories, maybe.