Rec
šµ
Swim or Sink
Like this post if you're also fed up with Billie Eilish. Jokes aside, her new album is one of the two most powerful pop records of the year so far. I just got around to her release and yesterday I listened to Dua Lipa's new album, so I'm making up for it twice over: I realized what I like about Billie's album compared to "Radical Optimism."
"HIT ME HARD AND SOFT" is a sophisticated alt-pop album that doesnāt even try to sound like a hit. I like that Billie intentionally didnāt turn her album into an event: near-zero promo without singles made me forget the album was even about to drop. āI donāt like singles. This album is like a family: I donāt want to leave any of the kids alone.ā So, I dived into this release with zero expectationsāand thatās probably the coolest strategy for promoting such music.
Dua Lipa's promo wasnāt the most outstanding, but it was big enough. But Iām more concerned with one specific part of it: Dua claimed in an interview that she was inspired by āBritish rave culture, Primal Scream, Massive Attack, Britpop, and Gorillaz.ā She even invited Kevin Parker and Danny L Harle to make the sound richer and more interesting. But when the album came out, I had only one question: where is all that? āRadical Optimismā turned out to be a very timid release, where I hear neither Trickyās nor Damon Albarnās approach. And Kevin Parkerās name in the credits just makes you snortāitās one of those cases where even a talented producer couldnāt save music heās not used to working with.
Billie and Finneas say they were inspired by Tyler, Lana, and Vince Staples' music. But listening to the album, I understand what they really meanāthe desire to ignore standards and do something of their own. This approach is closer to me: it sounds more honest and fully unfolds in the music itself. Finneas skillfully mixes pop, folk, and electronics, trying to make not a hit, but just cool music. Listen to the phenomenal transition in āLāamour De Ma Vieāāthis is the level of production weāre talking about. Billie overcomes herself and starts singing at full voice, moving away from the image of a āwhispering languid girl.ā The lyrics tell an honest and sometimes touching story of love and self-discovery. Everything works like clockwork hereāit seems like the same calculated pop approach as Dua Lipa's, but with the right passion and enjoyment.
Now letās look at the situation from the side of numbers, sales, and all that nonsense. Lipa obviously aimed for the chartsābut magically didnāt end up in them. Because even the mass listener can feel when the music doesnāt hit. I donāt like referring to the crowdās opinion, but here I completely agree with them: āRadical Optimismā turned out to be just a dull addition to quite powerful singles. Billieās album came out without any singles at all.
Will Billie and Finneasās creation become a hit? Probably not. But it wasnāt meant to beāitās more about talented music that deserves praise. An album not for the masses, but for critics, if you like.
Now fans are actively spreading the theory that Billieās album is actually a double one: firstly, the leaked merch hints at this, and secondlyāthe final line āBut when can I hear the next one?ā makes you want to believe itābecause Iād be happy to get another portion of Finneas's refined production.
Dua is calmly splashing in the water under the sun, while Billie Eilish is sinking, trying to overcome her main childhood fear (yes, the cover was shot live). Iām not a hater of Lipa, rather the oppositeābut I think stories like this should teach something. You canāt update your sound just by inviting Tame Impala, just as you canāt sell an album to the masses if thereās nothing to listen to besides the singles. If youāre inspired by Primal Scream, youāll have to play by different rules. Because while Dua is resting, Billie and Finneas are setting their own rules for the entire industry. And maybe not immediately, but everyone will appreciate it.
Jun 21, 2024
Comments
Make an account to reply.
Donāt have much to add other than HMH&S is the first album of either artist I fully listen to, no skips.
Related Recs
Rec
I donāt think pop music has historically ever had a moment like her āGirl, So Confusingā remix verse. Itās not a joke. Itās a triumph for literature. Everyone remembers where they were the first time they heard it. This was a serious revolution and took us out of her usual fever dreaminess of controlled poetic syntax (which I love) , to just unmasked, raw, chaotic feminine brutality and I donāt think we appreciate the prose switch-up enough. I also have said āletās work it out on the remix?ā to many people Iāve fought with since the song dropped. Sometimes I even write a verse mimicking the song taking accountability of what Iāve done and I send it to who Iām in a conflict with, it actually helps! Iām obsessed with the new singles off her upcoming album Virgin and Iām already studying the cadence of epigrams like āMDMA in the back gardenā,. Iām someone who struggles with severe summer depression, which is taboo in the world of seasonal sadists but taking my discman for a walk by the ocean as āThe Pathā starts up on my (files purchased on ITunes!) burnt CD-R copy of āSolar Powerā is natureās SSRI. Suck on that, Saint Johnās Wort.
Jun 13, 2025
Rec
That remix question reminded me of this one.
Taylor Swift is a complicated woman. Whether due to bravery, curiosity, or some sort of witchās curse, she seems dogged in her attempts to replicate music with which she has no experience or familiarity, the results of which are sometimesālike in this caseāfrustratingly better than expected. Kendrick Lamarās entire production team is behind this single for 2022ās Midnights, and itās got the same direct-injection powertrain of earlier bulldozers like Mine and Cornelia Street, with a great little melody skipping over the top and none of the lyrical mishaps that tend to go bump under the wheels of some of her other songs. And yet: it spends its entire 3 and a half minute runtime blindfolded and tied to a folding chair. We donāt get to see anything it can do. Eventually it sort of tips itself over and waves its legs in the air like a bug and dies. Thatās it.
I donāt understand what happened in the studio but there are at least several dozen people, mostly on SoundCloud rather than the remix album she seems to have helmed, that have taken this thing outside and brought it up to cruising speed. Once it gets going you can really feel it all lit up in neon, 14-inch talons, sparks skittering off where it touches the concrete. Itās a fantastic song I think. Probably one of her best. I wish I knew why it got the CIA treatment.
Taylor Swift is a complicated woman. Whether due to bravery, curiosity, or some sort of witchās curse, she seems dogged in her attempts to replicate music with which she has no experience or familiarity, the results of which are sometimesālike in this caseāfrustratingly better than expected. Kendrick Lamarās entire production team is behind this single for 2022ās Midnights, and itās got the same direct-injection powertrain of earlier bulldozers like Mine and Cornelia Street, with a great little melody skipping over the top and none of the lyrical mishaps that tend to go bump under the wheels of some of her other songs. And yet: it spends its entire 3 and a half minute runtime blindfolded and tied to a folding chair. We donāt get to see anything it can do. Eventually it sort of tips itself over and waves its legs in the air like a bug and dies. Thatās it.
I donāt understand what happened in the studio but there are at least several dozen people, mostly on SoundCloud rather than the remix album she seems to have helmed, that have taken this thing outside and brought it up to cruising speed. Once it gets going you can really feel it all lit up in neon, 14-inch talons, sparks skittering off where it touches the concrete. Itās a fantastic song I think. Probably one of her best. I wish I knew why it got the CIA treatment.
Rec
itās crazy to think sheās been around 15 years and this is one of the best songs sheās ever put out. Itās silly itās outrageous the lyrics read like a tumblr post and sheās just out here trying to be that girl. Itās been stuck in my head since I heard it. following up a poetry book which Iām sure not a lot of people read with this unhinged masterpiece is the energy I want to see in the world.
Apr 11, 2025
Top Recs from @nebraska
Rec
šThe best advice I've found, especially as a perfectionist. As someone who always strives for flawlessness, I've realized this mindset can often hold me back. It's easy to get caught up in making everything just right, but that can lead to never finishing projects or, worse, never starting them. This advice reminds me to focus on completion rather than perfection. It's about making progress and not letting the fear of imperfection paralyze you. You can always refine and improve something once it exists, but you can't improve what you haven't created yet. It's about striking a balance between quality and actually getting things done
Rec
ā¤ļøMy grandpa once told me:
"Live a worthy life. What makes a life worthy is something only you can define for yourself. So, live a life that feels meaningful to you, as long as it does not prevent others from living theirs. Don't let others define what a worthy life means for you. If for you, a worthy life means building a large family, build it; if it means earning a billion dollars, pursue that goal with all your might; if it means making as many memories as you can, go ahead; if it means being religious and praising God, do so. Live your worthy life and ignore anyone who tells you otherwise."
I couldn't find this quote anywhere so I think it was his own wisdom. Rest in Peace grandpaā¤ļø
I couldn't find this quote anywhere so I think it was his own wisdom. Rest in Peace grandpaā¤ļø
Rec
š¢If my body isn't a temple, it's definitely a startup company. Full of ideas that seem great at 2 AM, operates on caffeine and questionable decisions, and isn't profitable (yet)