2024 has truly been the year of ‘the pop girl’.
The pop scene has received an exciting jolt of invigoration from Gen Z artists who are fusing the musical brilliance and nostalgia of 90s and noughties pop, with the creative ingenuity and performance art of musicians such as Lady Gaga and Katy Perry.
Sabrina Carpenter is the epitome of this new ‘pop girl’ and has seemingly burst onto the music scene for many of the general public despite years of working in the industry. The infectiously caffeinated “Espresso”has been the song of the summer, whilst the follow up single “Please, Please, Please” was also met with similar fervour. Due to Carpenter’s chart success, the release of her sixth studio album Short n’ Sweet, has been eagerly anticipated.
This Friday (August 23rd) finally marked it’s debut. Does it live up to the hype?
As the name suggests, Carpenter has served up an album that is a short and sweet double shot of pop extravagance.
The opening track, “Taste”, which has been complimented by a brilliantly maniacal music video, finds a lover, post breakup, warning the on-off again girlfriend of her ex of the impact that she left on him during their relationship, telling her that “You’ll just have to taste me when he’s kissin’ you”. With a synth-rock sound that is as addictive as the hook in “Espresso”, it’s unlike any other song on the album. The same can be said for the rest of the record, with single song on the sounding alike. Rather than committing to a sense of sonic cohesion, Short n’ Sweetinsteadplays with a plethora of genres, spanning R&B, casual rock, pop, country and even elements of disco. This decision works effectively, with the distinctive sound of each song matching the wide array of conflicting emotions, trails, tribulations and euphoria that can emerge from relationships, which Carpenter details across the course of the album. It’s disappointing that it has been released so late in August, as its effortless listenability would have been the perfect soundtrack to the summer.
The record’s greatest strength, however, is just how brazenly honest that it feels. From mocking a boy who would “Jack off to lyrics by Leonard Cohen” on “Dumb & Poetic”, to asking her partner “Where art thou?/Why not uponeth me?” on the wonderfully sensual “Bed Chem”and declaring “I’m so f***in horny” on “Juno”, Carpenter has written lyrics and overt sexual innuendos that will make you spit out your morning cornflakes in disbelief or blush with embarrassment if played in front of close relatives. When taken out of context, these lines run the risk of being laughably embarrassing or grossly vindictive. Yet when delivered with the level of saccharine, sardonic wit that Carpenter possesses, they can’t help but make you laugh. In an era of music where fans must mine through elaborately written metaphors with a fine-tooth comb to decipher a song’s meanings, Carpenter wears her heart on her sleeve, delivering lines in a refreshingly open and earnest way. It allows the album to simply feel playful and easy to relate to. It’s also effortlessly addictive to sing along to. I have already been casually declaring “I’m working late cause I’m a singggerrrr” all summer long and cannot wait to find out which line I’ll be blaring from the rooftops next.
This year has seen the release of heavyweight, biblical-length albums such as Cowboy Carterand The Tortured Poets Department, which, whilst masterfully crafted, felt overstuffed and in need of cutting down. In contrast, Short n’ Sweet feels refreshingly concise. Its short length runs the risk of it being filled with songs produced to merely function as overplayed ‘Tik-Tok hits’ but each song never outstays its welcome, with the brief runtime actually aiding in reflecting the feeling of a ‘short and sweet’ relationship.
The albums previously released singles “Espresso” and “Please, Please, Please” are of course standouts, possessing high levels of camp and melodrama that make them wonderfully catchy, chart topping hits.
The highlights of the album for me though, come with “Sharpest Tool” and “Juno”.
“Sharpest Tool”is soft, pretty and earnest, whilst managing to be scathing in its indictment of a partner that refuses to talk and work through the problems of a relationship. The song is beautifully melodic, with producer Jack Antonoff fusing his distinctive use of 80s-esque synth with the light pluck of guitar strings that I cannot help but just sink into and drift away with. The song constantly builds to a crescendo, only to be drawn back at the very end, mirroring a relationship that never goes anywhere and breaks down due to a lack of communication. It also showcases features Carpenter’s iridescent vocals, which reach insane heights across the album.
From the beauteous low delivery of “motherf***er” on “Please, Please, Please”, the breathy tones in Bed Chem and to the country twang on “Slim Pickins”and “Coincidence”, Carpenter has put her full vocal prowess on display. Her vocals show not just how good of a singer that she is but also how she is a brilliant performer.
Carpenter is perhaps her most playfully performative on the outlier of the album, “Juno”. The subject matter of the song, which appears to be a playful nod to the 2007 movie of the same name, makes you do a double take upon an initial listen, yet once it reaches its instrumental interlude, it’s hard not to dance along. The verses are light and airy interspersed with a rock fuelled chorus, evoking a ‘John Hughsian’ movie soundtrack quality that manages to feel both nostalgic and refreshing. This track has been on repeat ever since I first listened and will easily make my list of favourite songs of the year.
Of course, the album is by no means a masterpiece or without its flaws. Despite its range of styles, it does suffer from feeling slightly all over the place, saying everything whilst also saying nothing at the same time. I didn’t find much of interest or excitement in “Good Graces” and “Lie to Girls” and whilst the album closer, “Don’t Smile” is lyrically astute, rounding off the album’s themes, it’s sonically one note. It comes across as a ‘vibe’ as opposed to a bookend for the record.
What is most exciting about Short n’ Sweetthough, is its sheer willingness to have fun. The album is a wonderful coagulation, with Carpenter performing every song with an infectious charisma, floating effortlessly between different genres. Carpenter has adopted the Swiftian rulebook of mining the goldmines of personal relationships for relatable and universal life messages, used the brazen brilliance and country twang of Dolly Parton and performs with a sense of deviousness and confidence that is akin to Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.
Short n’ Sweethas proved that Carpenter is cementing her place in the music industry.
I for one cannot wait to see what she does next.
