It’s July 30th 2021 and Billie Eilish has finally blessed us with another album. We are, as we should be, collectively losing our minds.
Like many of her fans, I fell in love with Billie’s voice from the moment I heard her debut single ‘Ocean Eyes’. This song floored me. But at the time I didn’t know many people who listened to her music. Despite loving all the tracks Billie was producing at this time, I still felt as though Billie’s music was a little unpolished. However, looking back now, it’s obvious Billie was trying to develop her own style and had only scratched the surface of what she could achieve.
With each new release, the singer soared higher and higher through the charts with her album ‘When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?’ securing multiple platinum record sales. To me, this album really embodies Billie’s personal style circa 2019. The green/black hair, baggy clothes, edgy-teen energy it exudes is immaculate, but it also made me wonder whether she would ever be able to top it.
Enter ‘Happier Than Ever’.
This whole album is breathtaking. I don’t think there is a single track I don’t like, which is an incredibly impressive feat considering just how different they are. Somehow, Billie made it work. Each track showcases her range as an artist while retaining her signature style and flowing effortlessly into the next. The album starts with one of the softer tracks on the album and feels reminiscent of Billie’s songs.
To me, ‘Getting Older’ feels nostalgic, even upon the first listen, and is easily one of my favourite tracks on the album. Growing up and figuring out who you are also seems to be one of the main themes of this album as ‘my future’ also refers to change. This track starts very slow and dream-like, but then the music swells and you can really feel Billie’s excitement towards finding herself.
While Billie might not have met the final version of herself yet, it’s clear she has changed over the last few years. Now nearing the end of her teenage years and entering adulthood, Billie is indeed getting older and I think this is reflected in tracks like ‘Oxytocin’ and ‘NDA’ which take on a darker, sexier vibe. I can imagine these songs playing in a club or at the very least, a teen drama with overly graphic sex/drug-fuelled scenes. I’m looking at you Euphoria!
The final theme, and possibly most important theme I recognised in this album was that of obsession. Whether you’re her biggest fan, or you hate her guts, it’s impossible to ignore the hold that Miss Eilish has over popular media. From her fashion, to her love life, news-outlets (arguably her biggest fans) are eager to gobble up all things ‘Billie Eilish’. This obsession with the teens’ life is central to the album. ‘Not My Responsibility’, which takes the form of spoken-word poetry and is cleverly situated at the centre of the album, talks about body image. Whereas ‘OverHeated’ focuses on the stress and exhaustion that comes with being stalked by paparazzi. These tracks, both beautiful and tragic deserve much more recognition.
All-in-all, this is, undoubtedly, my favourite album and I really can’t wait to see what Billie does next. My hope is she continues to experiment with new styles and maybe even release some collaborations with other artists.