On Friday, September 8th, Olivia Rodrigo released her album “GUTS” and the world of teenage girls freaked out. Rightfully so! This was a long-awaited album after her previous release of “Sour” which was loved for its relatable and heart-wrenching lyrics. “Sour” was delved into and analyzed for its numerous references to Olivia’s past lover, Joshua Bassett. There was also tension with his new girl, Sabrina Carpenter, which is reference between the songs in her previous album as well.
No one knew what to expect from her newest album. Were we going to get something GUT-wrenching (see what I did there)? Or were we going to get an empowering I’ve-moved-on type of vibe? Read along as I go through this album track by track and give my honest reviews on it.
Track 1: All-american b*tch
My Rating: 6.5/10
This song is interesting in its melody. It starts off slow and calm, then the chorus speeds up and sounds more fun. It reminds me of a Disney Channel song. I feel like I would hear this in a coming-of-age, teenage movie of a girl in her garage forming a band with her friends. I think that the change in melody is really what makes this song spectacular. Some lyrics are Instagram-caption-worthy, but I do feel as though the lyrics could have been a little stronger. However, it is meant to be a fun song, rather than a deep, metaphorically sad one.
Track 2: Bad idea right?
My Rating: 5/10
I love how this song started off. She sounded like she was just talking. However, the lead-up to the chorus was a little bit weak. The chorus itself was okay. This song was very conversational. We heard Olivia talking more instead of singing in this song. Again, it sounds like a pop-punk song I would hear on Disney Channel. It really channels that 2000s vibe which we don’t see that often anymore, which I think is very unique.
track 3: Vampire
My Rating: 7.5/10
This song was a single, so I had high expectations. When it started, it sounded like it was going to be a sad song. That made me very excited because I love Olivia’s lyricism in her sad songs because she is very talented in tugging at your heartstrings. As soon as the chorus kicked in and the song sped up, I started loving it more. It seemed like this song had a sinister and angry undertone, which reflects the “vampire” theme of the song. This song resembled some of the songs on “Sour” as a whole, but not any single one in particular. I really like this one because she sounds regretful, angry, and also sad. This is reflected in the speed of the song, and how it starts off as slow but progresses as it goes on and reflects the anger that she feels.
Track 4: Lacy
My Rating: 9/10
I absolutely loved how unique this song was. The whole vibe was extremely eerie and mysterious. As soon as I heard the lyrics, it made me think of Selena Gomez’s song “Perfect” where she describes the obsession and infatuation she develops for her lover’s secret partner that they are hiding from her. Selena and Olivia both speak of this person in an admiring sort of light. They speak about how they want to be beautiful and amazing, just like this person. It’s a way of describing extreme comparison to a person to the point where you start romanticizing them. I loved the metaphors in this song. I feel like the whole song can be interpreted in many ways, which is lovely.
Track 5: ballad of a homeschooled girl
My Rating: 7/10
This song immediately reminded me of “Jealousy, Jealousy” from “Sour”. Olivia describes how she is imperfect, she doesn’t feel like she is doing anything right and hates everything about being judged by others. This song is easily relatable and I feel as though the target audience for this is teenage girls since they are prone to overthinking. I like that Olivia tries to speak to this audience to make them feel like everything that they’re feeling is okay, and that they’re not alone in feeling this way. The ending of the song slowed down and then suddenly picked up, which I really liked.
track 6: making the bed
My Rating: 9.5/10
This has to be my favorite song out of the whole album. I am a sucker for sad and depressing songs, and Olivia knows how to do those very well. I love how you can feel her emotions through these lyrics. You can tell that she is hurting while taking responsibility for the faults in her life. I think this is also a very hurtful and relatable song because it’s about recognizing that you are ultimately the cause of some of the mistakes in your life, which is a hard pill to swallow. Olivia does a beautiful job capturing the feeling that this evokes in a person when dealing with these revelations.
track 7: logical
My Rating: 8.5/10
Another sad song, yay! This song immediately reminded me of “Favorite Crime” from “Sour”. I love the piano in the background, and I love the mellow lyrics. She also used a lot of metaphors in this song, which was fun to analyze. The chorus was beautiful and gave me chills. When she says “changing you is possible” in a pleading and hopeful way, just to completely invalidates it in the later lyrics. Olivia is very skilled in allowing her audience to feel the range of her emotions throughout her lyrics, and that’s exactly what she did here. I feel like I’m in her head and I hear her thoughts as she’s singing them. The music becomes more tense and reflects the frustration in her voice. There’s also an apparent strain in her voice, which makes the lyrics even more painful to hear. I think she did a great job in the delivery of her emotions in this song.
track 8: get him back!
My Rating: 8/10
This song immediately felt like a summer song that you would blast in the car with the windows down. She started off with a conversational tone and spoke for the first portion of the song. After that, the chorus kicked in and the guitar stood out the most to me. These lyrics are the type you’d scream at the top of your lungs with all of your girlfriends. Olivia plays the role of the crazy obsessive ex and describes violent and crude acts to get her man back. It’s a mix of love and anger, which is a very powerful mixture and made for a very high-tempo, powerful song.
track 9: love is embarrassing
My Rating: 7.5/10
Right from the title, I knew this song was going to be highly relatable. I was right. It seemed like the target audience was teenage girls as well. This is the type of song you blast in your bedroom as you dance around. It was fun, lighthearted, and very relatable. It detailed the hardships of falling in love, and how stupid it can make you feel. We’ve all been there, Olivia. The song remained fast-paced and followed the pop-punk theme.
track 10: the grudge
My Rating: 9/10
This song sounded like poetry. The pace of the song picked up after the first few lines, and Olivia’s voice expressed immense pain. This song almost made me cry. She described arguments and incompatibilities with her partner, and how she was also forced to be strong through all the pain she has endured. She speaks about how she can’t let go or forgive these things, and how difficult it is to be strong. This song reminded me of “Enough For You” from “Sour” which was my favorite song off of that album, so this song has a special place in my heart. The lyrics were painful and really dug deep.
track 11: pretty isn’t pretty
My Rating: 7/10
The message is wonderful. It’s very empowering that Olivia spoke about this topic because her audience is greatly subjected to it and relating to it. She describes how she is constantly trying to change herself to become prettier and fit in with society’s standards, but she fails to be “pretty enough”. The song has a melancholic vibe, but the melody is not slow. This is very powerful and I think that it’s almost comforting to know that even celebrities like Oliva can have these feelings.
track 12: teenage dream
My Rating: 8.5/10
This song also drove me to tears. I immediately break down when I think about growing up and having my youth slip away from me. Olivia beautifully constructed lyrics that explained the yearning to go back to your childhood. She also expressed the despair of having to grow up and having no way of going back and losing the best parts of herself. She is not hopeful that things will get better as she grows, and she is unsure about the future. I think it reflects what every teenager worries about in their head, even if they don’t verbalize these feelings. She normalizes the fear of growing up and having time pass us by.
This album was truly spectacular. I need to give it a few more listens before I decide if I like it better than “Sour,” though. I found that I liked Olivia’s sad and slower songs as opposed to the new pop-punk theme she’s going for. I think that it’s unique that she’s playing on this theme because we don’t see it very often with current artists right now. It brings me back to my childhood because it sounds like the songs I would hear in coming-of-age movies. I like that she speaks about preserving her youth as well, and you can hear it through the themes in her songs, which widely target young teenage girls. I feel as though she’s relatable, even to people other than the target audience. Relatability is a key factor in the success of music, and Olivia has that mastered. Overall, I would give this album a 7/10 as of right now. I think Olivia has a lot more in store for us and I’m excited to see how she shapes pop music in the future.