Today, up-and-coming pop (or dare I now say rock) star Olivia Rodrigo released her sophomore album entitled Guts. Guts follows her smash-hit debut album, Sour, which was released in May 2021. Sour saw great success securing a top spot on the Billboard charts instantly. The album also received a whopping 7 Grammy nominations and took home three wins for Best Pop Solo Album, Best New Artist, and Best Pop Solo Performance. Such notable accomplishments for an artist of her age and relative freshness to the music industry speak volumes about the trends in achievement that she is heading towards.
Although the success of Sour is a considerable blessing to Rodrigo, it also comes with a burden. In creating a second album on the heels of such a hit, Rodrigo risked falling prey to the so-called “second-album slump.” But upon first impressions, Rodrigo should not fear that she succumbed to that fate. Guts has already been receiving stellar reviews just hours post-release, with Rolling Stones Magazine stating her album is one of a “truly brilliant rockstar,” becoming “another instant classic, with her most ambitious, intimate, and messy songs yet.” The New York Times seemed to reach similar conclusions, calling Guts “a diamond.”
And in my humble opinion, I couldn’t agree more.
I took the afternoon to sit down and listen to all 12 tracks chronologically. I heard many similarities to Sour, but ultimately found Guts to be rawer and well-established. The growth between Sour and Guts is truly a testament to the growth that occurs in a young woman’s life in only one or two years. I give a short blurb on some of my favorite tracks from my first comprehensive listen, however, I encourage you to take much of what I have to say with a grain of salt. You should experience the ultimate love-child of Hayley Williams, Avril Lavigne, and Taylor Swift in album form on your own.
Track 1: “all-american b*tch”
My first thought was “oh this is Avril!” You really see a clear early 2000s punk rock influence throughout a good majority of Rodrigo’s discography, but to have that be my first impression of Guts, it really set the tone for the rest of the listen. Her opening track is the quintessential windows-down-in-the-car, head banging anthem. The slightly cynical subtext of the lyrics gives an angry edge to not only teenage girlhood, but societal expectations was a real maturity from some of her debut songs.
Track 3: “vampire”
This was the first of the two singles pre-released this past July, and listening for the first time a few months ago got me very excited for Guts. The vulnerable quality that is in her vocal performance is seldom matched. The subtle voice crack from the powerfully belted “oh-oh-oh” to “blood sucker…” is just heart wrenching.
Track 4: “lacy”
This is another track where I really noticed an influence from other artists. Most predominantly however, I noticed a type of resemblance to Conan Gray’s music, straying away from the heavy pop/rock tunes. This was sweet as followers of Rodrigo know that she and Gray are close friends. The meaning behind “lacy” is also being heavily debated as some are conspiracizing that Rodrigo was alluding to being queer. This speculation, however, is unconfirmed.
Track 6: “making the bed”
The 6th track started to introduce a theme I picked up on throughout the entire album: Rodrigo feeling pressured to act older than her age. Guts was written and produced when she was 19. That is incredibly young to be faced with such a public existence. I found this track to be a good break from the consistent angst and rocker vibes of the preceding tracks, and many teens are already saying that they resonate deeply with the lyrics she vulnerably created.
Track 10: “the grudge”
One of the things that I believe Rodrigo can do best as an artist is craft a really solid ballad. “the grudge” is just that. I found it more mature than some of her older ballads on Sour due to what seemed like a more adult heartbreak.
Track 12: “teenage dream”
This song was my favorite on Guts. As an almost 19 year old girl listening to this in her first semester of college, I feel as though I resonated heavily with lots of Rodrigo’s interpretations of existence at this phase of life. If you want a good, desperate teenage cry, I recommend using “teenage dream” to get the water works flowing.
All in all, I found Guts to be another triumph on behalf of Olivia Rodrigo. I am sure that the release will get a lot of buzz from Gen Zers and music critics alike. The maturity and growth from Rodrigo complimented by a clear devotion to her brand and musical strong suits, creating another home-run of a project on her behalf.