olivia rodrigo sets a record

"(Wasn’t Billy Joel referenced in another Zoomer anthem recently? Is he having a moment?)"

oh maybe, I seem to regularly see him referenced on twitter by people younger than me without the derisiveness he justly deserves, so that would explain that.

this alternate (Target) artwork is godawful!

https://target.scene7.com/is/image/Target/GUEST_c4984bd5-b5ac-4c4a-afbe-b8c0ce840257?fmt=pjpeg&wid=700&qlt=80

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgOl2bdevqM

this one's pretty good, hope she can keep things up for the album. my only complaint is the last chorus needed to be a bit longer!

I think it’s awesome, best one yet!

She’s on SNL this weekend.

I had not heard Drivers License until this week and goddamn that is a teenage anthem.

she needs to cover new ground lyrically lol

for the sake of balance i'll say i like "deja vu" more w/ each listen

It’s funny/cute how each song strategically has one (1) swear word.

The chorus of this new song hits some 1995 sweet spot for me, man…

(and the bridge into washed-out verse, before it all comes crashing in again, is a great move)

I mean when you say "1995 sweet spot" do you mean something more diffuse or do you specifically mean this is like "You Oughtta Know," which it is, and Rodrigo directly says she wants the album to be like Jagged Little Pill

I wasn’t thinking about album specifically (but I like this better than that!)

The melody does remind me of something specific from around that time, but I can’t put my finger on it…

I like almost nothing better than "You Oughta Know," I put it on after listening to "Good 4 You" and goosebumps all the way down my spine just like in 1995, jesus

Has anyone heard any other stuff by this dude Dan Nigro – the indie rocker turned popsmith who’s co-writing and producing these tunes?

much prefer "good 4 u" and its Juliana Hatfield moves to anything else she's released but I wish this style of vocal affectation would disappear

yes ilxors have heard dan nigro's songs w/ sky ferreira two of which placed in our year-end polls iirc xp

plus another year-end finisher w/ caroline polachek "so hot you're hurting my feelings" (v good)

personally have also heard the conan gray singles (not good)

Gotcha, thx (xxp – Juliana Hatfield is a good reference point, btw)

She sounded good on SNL! Yeah, she can sing.

The band was a little lackluster… I guess Dan Nigro was the scrubby guy she hugged at the end (judging by this pic of him).

Nigro says since working with Grey, his inbox is filled daily with new artists' pitches -- but Olivia Rodrigo immediately captured his attention. He quickly went on her Instagram and found a clip of a song called “Happier,” saying, “I just got the chills and I was like, ‘Oh my God, her voice is insane.’ I literally DM’d her that second and was like, ‘Hey, I think you're amazing. We should make music.’”

I don't see that as creepy. She was applying for a job that he accepted.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiaCdUACJp8

sounds like "Misery Business" to me

I don't hear it

this new track is fucking excellent

It's stupid good... like maybe the best song in this style I've ever heard. (After a weekend of listening, I have the subjective data to upgrade it from my initial "this is cool" assessment to "this is truly great.")

"good 4 u" was made 4 me

second #1

https://i.imgur.com/ty8C7Vo.jpg

album is pretty good! a very solid pop-singer-songwriter debut. she indeed really could use more lyrical range though lol

highlights are "brutal" with its elvis costello interpolation and "jealousy, jealousy"

My CD arrives tmrrw!

OK, listening online now... "1 Step Forward, 3 Steps Back" is sure one for the songs that sound like other songs books, LOL

swift & antonoff are credited on it for the "new year's day" rip

Haha, yeah just looked that up.

they should have credited costello though for "brutal"

which EC song does that "interpolate"?

(I'm hearing the above-discussed Alanis similarities more in the context of the full album)

she indeed really could use more lyrical range though lol

haha - by the time you get to "Happier," it's almost like a parody of a breakup album ("We broke up a month ago..."). I like a good waltz, tho

pump it up xp

"Jealousy, Jealousy" is indeed a cool jam

This is pretty much what I was expecting – some solid songs, some ok songs – though maybe a little restrained overall... I wish they swung for the fences a little more, and got even more enjoyably straight-faced cheesy.

(though I can apparently barely write a coherent sentence, so who am I to talk)

omfg "brutal"

yeah that's the best new track

As for the rest: the relentless of the hysteria is its own attraction.

i wish the whole thing was like "brutal"

same, it *rules*

I found this to be kind of a chore and turned it off before the end

"Traitor" and "Happier" are basically the same song, no?

I like "Favorite Crime" a lot...

Kid played me "Brutal," sounds like Elastica.

Someone sent me this, which I suppose is meant to support Murgatroid's comparison above:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YB-rn6f--XY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMEiL3lLRqg

I love how teenage this record sounds.

The run from Brutal to Good 4 U is *chefs kiss* but it’s got way too many ballads at the end. They’re good ballads! But it needs more upbeat, louder tracks

Yeah, that’s kind of what I (clumsily) was trying to say