"SOUR" by Olivia Rodrigo || Album Review

Olivia Rodrigo, 18, rose to superstardom after her debut single, drivers license, quite literally stopped the world. It debuted at #1, making her the first artist in the Billboard Hot 100 Chart's history to have a debut single debut at #1, where it stayed at #1 for eight weeks. The name "Olivia Rodrigo" was seen and heard everywhere. I was aware of her before because she was one of the lead actresses on Disney Channel's Bizaardvark, which I enjoyed. Now, just a few years later, she is arguably the biggest singer-songwriter in the world.

After she released drivers license, deja vu, and good 4 u, I was getting very worried because, at this point, my expectations were high. I thoroughly enjoyed every single released before the album. Pressing play on the album when it came out, on May 21, 2021, was one of the most nerve-wracking things I had to do this year. I have had some time to fully digest the album, so I think now is the perfect time for a review. Did SOUR meet my expectations or were the singles a false representation of how good the album would be?

Track 1: brutal

When I listened to brutal for the first time, I had to restart it about five times before the chorus even began. The hard, grungy instrumental was unexpected as an opening track, but it served its purpose of keeping my attention. brutal is very angsty, as Rodrigo sings about her teenage years not being as fun or interesting as she thought it would have been. She also touches on topics most teenagers can relate to, such as: being told by older folks to enjoy your youth even when it sucks, not having enough independence, and being insecure. My favorite lyric is, "And I'm not cool and I'm not smart and I can't even parallel park." Rodrigo has a way of writing extremely relatable lyrics, without it sounding out of place or cheesy, which is something we see throughout her album. brutal is my most played song off of SOUR. It is guaranteed to get stuck in your head, especially that chorus, which is reminiscent of early 2000s punk-pop music.

Track 2: traitor

traitor is a complete 180 from brutal. It is a slow song about her ex-lover moving on quickly after their breakup to the girl he told Olivia not to worry about. Rodrigo sings, "It took you two weeks to go off and date her. Guess you didn't cheat, but you're still a traitor." It's clear she was deeply attached and in love with this boy who didn't seem to even care about her. traitor tackles the feeling of when you start to realize your gut was telling you the truth the entire time, but as Rodrigo says, "I kept quiet, so I could keep you." My favorite lyric is, "When she's sleeping in the bed we made, don't you dare forget about the way you betrayed me." It still gives me chills whenever I listen to it, because of how it leads into the chorus. In addition, the high note Rodrigo hits in the final chorus shows off her insane vocal range.

Track 3: drivers license

drivers license, the song that made Rodrigo a household name and prominent figure in the music industry, deserved every piece of recognition it got because it is truly a fantastic song. drivers license has one of the best bridges I've ever heard in my life and most times, I listen just because I want to hear the bridge again. The concept of drivers license is about Olivia getting her license and the license being a ticket to freedom. Her ex-lover wanted her to get her driver's license because it would allow them to finally have some level of freedom to see each other, but by the time she received it, they had already broken up. She got her license partially because of him, and now that she has it, he's gone and she's left with sadness. It's very rare for a ballad to receive the amount of success drivers license has, but it just shows you how talented Rodrigo is. Not only is she a great songwriter, but her ability to make her listeners feel the pain she felt in this time of her life made for a great and relatable tune. My favorite lyric is, "Can't drive past the places we used to go to cuz I still fucking love you." It's simple, but effective because of how she sings it.

Track 4: 1 step forward, 3 steps back

1 step forward, 3 steps back samples "New Year's Day" from Taylor Swift's album "reputation", which is not at all surprising since Rodrigo is a self-proclaimed swiftie. 1 step forward, 3 steps back is a simple ballad about not knowing which version of her ex-lover she would get on a daily basis when they were in a relationship. His behavior leads her to wonder if she actually enjoys his toxicity in my favorite lyric, "And maybe in some masochistic way, I kind of find it all exciting. Like, which lover will I get today? Will you walk me to the door or send me home crying?" Though simple instrumentally, 1 step forward, 3 steps back is a standout on SOUR and one of my personal favorites.

Track 5: deja vu

deja vu was released as the second single from SOUR, right after drivers license. With all the success drivers license received, as a fan, I was nervous to see how well her follow-up single would match up and Rodrigo did not disappoint. Shifting her style from a melancholic ballad, drivers license, to a bright indie-pop tune, deja vu, it was clear that she wasn't going to be a one-hit-wonder. In my personal opinion, deja vu is Rodrigo's best song. I play deja vu every day and have already given it the title of my favorite song of 2021. Lyrically, I've never heard a song like this. Rodrigo basically drags her ex-lover for not being original. Everything they did together when they were a couple, he did the same with his new girlfriend. Cleverly, Rodrigo asks if he gets deja vu when he does the same things with the new girl that he did with her. My favorite lyric is, "So when you gonna tell her that we did that, too? She thinks it's special, but it's all reused." There are so many highlights in deja vu, but the biggest moment for me was the bridge, which reminded me of my favorite song from Taylor Swift's "Lover" album, "Cruel Summer". Rodrigo wears her influences on her sleeve unapologetically, without copying their styles, adding to her versatility as an artist.

Track 6: good 4 u

good 4 u was released a week before SOUR as the album's third single. I decided early on that I would wait to listen to it when the album came out, but after two days, I caved. Once again, Rodrigo gave us another reason to show us that she's here to stay. good 4 u was completely different from drivers license and deja vu, showing a pop-punk version of Rodrigo we had never seen before. Many compared it to Paramore's song, Misery Business, which I hadn't heard before, but after listening, I agree. good 4 u is a bitter song about her ex-lover being so unaffected by their breakup and moving on so easily, while Olivia still suffers from a broken heart. It's very sarcastic and I love it. Another thing I love about good 4 u is how she used the words, "Well, good for you" twice in every verse and three times in the chorus, adding to the sarcastic nature of the song. My favorite lyric is, "Well, good for you. I guess that you've been working on yourself. I guess the therapist I found for you, she really helped. Now, you can be a better man to your brand new girl." good 4 u is guaranteed to get stuck in your head, which makes sense as it debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at #1, making Rodrigo the first artist to have two songs from a debut album to debut at #1 in the chart's history.

Track 7: enough for you

When I saw the tracklist the first time, I claimed enough for you as my favorite song and it is most definitely one of my favorites. enough for you is about Rodrigo's lover making it seem like she was the one who wasn't trying to make the relationship work, but in reality, he was the one who didn't appreciate her. It's a descriptive, acoustic track with lyrics that cut like a knife. enough for you was written entirely by Rodrigo, which shows us how talented she is as a songwriter. My favorite lyric is, "You say I'm never satisfied, but I don't think that's true cuz all I ever wanted was to be enough for you." Another standout moment was the bridge, "Don't you think I loved you too much to be used and discarded? Don't you think I loved you too much to think I deserve nothing? But don't tell me you're sorry, boy. Feel sorry for yourself cuz someday I'll be everything to somebody else." I wouldn't be surprised if enough for you is released as the next single.

Track 8: happier

happier, in my opinion, is the weakest song on SOUR. I don't see myself ever listening to it outside of the album. The issue is the repetition of the chorus. Between the second chorus and third chorus, there is an instrumental bridge. I think happier could have used a bridge, but I don't think it's a terrible song. I just wouldn't listen to it on my own. Nevertheless, I can commend Rodrigo for her honesty, as happier is about hoping her ex is happier with his new girlfriend but not as happy as he was with her. My favorite lyric is, "Do you tell her she's the most beautiful girl you've ever seen? An eternal love bullshit you know you'll never mean. Remember when I believed you meant it when you said it first to me? Now, I'm picking her apart. Like cuttin' her down will make you miss my wretched heart." happier isn't a bad song, but I think deja vu is a better version of it.

Track 9: jealousy, jealousy

jealousy, jealousy was not my favorite when I listened to the album, but it has grown a lot on me, partially because of the bridge. Just like good 4 u and brutal, it gives a punk-pop feel. It speaks about how social media makes her insecure and unhappy because everyone's life seems to be better and more interesting than hers. She says she's happy for the people she sees on her social media, but she's also very jealous of them. She sings, "Jealousy, jealousy started following me," which is a pretty clever lyric because she writes about jealousy following her, as if jealousy is something that can follow her, like how you follow someone on social media. Hands-down, my favorite lyrics come from the bridge, "All your friends are so cool. You go out every night in your daddy's nice car. Yeah, you're living the life. Got a pretty face, a pretty boyfriend, too. I wanna be you so bad and I don't even know you. All I see is what I should be: happier, prettier; jealousy, jealousy." I also love the piano in the background while she sings the bridge. In the context of the album, it works well because, after a breakup, it is normal for someone to be really insecure, so it fits perfectly.

Track 10: favorite crime

favorite crime is another song that grew on me and now, it is one of my favorites. It is a great conclusion of the breakup, where Rodrigo sings about her role in how the relationship ended. She uses crime references throughout the song, calling herself a willing accomplice in the first verse, as she would do anything for him because of how much she loved him. She would defend him if he did anything wrong, be his alibi whenever he was in trouble, and whenever he crossed the line, she would still love him. My favorite lyric is, "One heart broke, four hands bloody," which means she helped him sabotage herself, and in the end, she was the one left with a broken heart. I think I speak for everyone when I say the best part of favorite crime is the harmonies in the final chorus.

Track 11: hope ur ok

hope ur ok is probably the most important song on the album. It was a great decision on her part to include a song like this on the album, as it has nothing to do with her ex-lover. As a new artist, she didn't want to be branded as the girl who writes about heartbreak and hope ur ok shows that she can write about anything she wants. The guitar in the song reminds me of "peace" from Taylor Swift's folklore album. The song is about two of Olivia's friends from the past who had really traumatic childhoods, because of their sexualities and in one case, physical abuse from a parent. She ended SOUR on a sweet note and I couldn't think of a more perfect way to end an album like this. My favorite lyric is, "Address the letters to the holes in my butterfly wings," which makes me think about using the bad times in life to grow and using your mistakes to become a better you. There is also another really great lyric in hope ur ok, which says, "Hope he took his bad deal and made a royal flush," which is an impressive card analogy. hope ur ok will most likely make you tear up.

SOUR is an impressive debut album and I cannot wait to see what Olivia will do the second time around. It has only been out for a week and a half, but I can tell SOUR is going to be one of the albums we will come back to years from now and appreciate more and more, much like Lorde's 2017 album "Melodrama", SZA's 2017 "CTRL" album, Beyonce's 2016 album "Lemonade", and Kendrick Lamar's 2015 album "To Pimp a Butterfly". There is no age barrier. Rodrigo is young, but no matter how old you are, you will enjoy SOUR. Olivia Rodrigo is here to stay and SOUR is the best album of 2021 so far.

Favorites: deja vu, 1 step forward, 3 steps back, favorite crime, good 4 u, brutal, enough for you

Least favorite: happier

Rating: 8.5/10 (excellent)

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