By Cadyn Hollingsworth ’25
Olivia Rodrigo is back with a vengeance, and doesn’t care what you think about it.
After a six month break from writing music following the release of Sour, Rodrigo began writing fervently for a new album around November of 2022, finishing 150 songs of which only 20 made it recording. Although having publicly talked many times about the pressure of writing a second album that lives up to her first, she’s also spoken about having much more to write about now that she’s grown into the freedom of her first few years as an adult. Though admitting to Rolling Stone Magazine that she “felt like [she] couldn’t write a song without thinking about what other people were going to think of it,” her months of work produced a record that reflects the opposite– she is doing what she wants to do: making a sincere yet playful and sarcastic pop-punk record that doesn’t “take itself so seriously,” as she told Rolling Stone.
Opening with the attention-grabbing, fun “all american b*tch,” the scene is immediately set. With brutally sarcastic humor and manic relatability, the opening track quickly became a fan favorite following Guts’ release on September 8th, landing more Spotify streams than any other album cut on the record. It is immediately followed up by the first two singles released from the album: “bad idea right?” and “vampire,” the first of which follows in the footsteps of “all-american b*tch,” while the second offers variety and new emotion for the record. Though the album starts very strong with three of the most popular songs leading off, it feels significantly front-loaded by the end, the last third feeling unfortunately bare in comparison. No record is without its flaws and though pacing is certainly one of the biggest for Guts, the flow makes up for it by weaving seamlessly in and out of wildly fun pop-punk and powerful, strong ballads.
Flaws can be relative, however, relying on strengths to stand out. The most glaring issue of Guts is the few songs and moments that feel unoriginal, uninspired and uninteresting– but these only stand out because of how original and interesting the rest of the record is. In almost every song, there is a risk that has been taken, whether it’s dissonant chords in “lacy,” tempo play in “ballad of a homeschooled girl,” new wave reminiscent voice pops in “love is embarrassing” or bringing real, raw emotion to songs like “logical,” and “making the bed.” However, several songs rely on good production and easy writing rather than good writing and authenticity to be memorable. “the grudge” has some appeal for bringing decent emotion to the table, but feels like a rehash of better written ballads earlier on the album. Though released as a single with entertaining lyrics, “get him back!” leans far too heavily on a wholly unoriginal melody, appealing to the listeners base instincts of catchiness rather than interesting writing. “pretty isn’t pretty” has fantastic production but is far too simple and predictable to have any kind of lasting impact. It’s nearly impossible, though, to create an album that is imaginative and unique from front to back while also having enough variety to be interesting. At the end of the day, a few dips in quality does not negate the creativity and path-paving nature of Guts.
Released as a pop album at the time that it has been, Guts has lots to offer to the music scene. The elements of 80s and 90s throwback melodies, arrangements, and more are mixed in so well that they only strengthen the album as Gen-Z representative and defining. More than anything else, the progression of Rodrigo’s ever-growing writing skills are clear. Many reused ideas across the album such as talking over verses and line cliches (chords chromatically moving up or down one note at a time) do not sound lazy but rather develop in such a way that establishes and reinforces Rodrigo’s own style and sound. Ultimately, having a unique sound but not sounding the same from song to song is one of the greatest challenges for up and coming artists, and she has already completely succeeded in this area. Building off of the successes and criticisms of Sour, Rodrigo has truly grown into her own sound and feel, showing tremendous promise for her future with the inventiveness, risk-taking and originality that Guts has established.
Image Credit: Olivia Rodrigo
