you seem pretty hyped: One of the biggest popstars returns with highly-anticipated third record //

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GRAMMY-award winning, multi-platinum selling singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo is quite possibly one of the most influential artists out there. The once Disney child actor turned Drivers’ Licence star has been the driving force behind some of pop’s most glamoured songs since the turn of the 2020s. A platinum strike-out with angsty debut SOUR and sophisticated follow-up GUTS two years later. Now, Rodrigo returns with her third, you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love. For a popstar who has garnered such seismic stature, her music is always one to rise above the blaring fanfares.

It’s seems we have one man to thank for this record – or perhaps as to why Olivia started singing in the first place. An ode to childhood hero Robert Smith, Olivia’s third record perhaps delivers a project she’s been wanting to do all along. A sprawling dark-wave inspired soundscape, you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love plays out as Olivia being doleful, out of sorts: and its amazing. Hung on both the hooks of melancholy texts of late ’70s to early ’80s (think Joy Division, Siouxsie and the Banshees) and the purposed direction of modernised pop, it is both an nostalgic dream and an existential nightmare of self-regard.

Unlike most pop records nowadays, it doesn’t feature your usual cut-and-paste display either; every song offers a slightly different angle to Olivia’s new edge. While the slowed-tempo synth throbs and low-tone guitar yearns are not subtle in telling you what scene they reside themselves in; it makes for a wicked reimagining of a gothic-pop record in the 21st Century.

It can be said that the first trio of songs – drop dead, stupid song, honeybee – are very much “classic Rodrigo” fast feel-good catchy pop anthems. Arguably surface-level but coherent enough to feature on this record. The record really flourishes from minute ten onwards here. maggots for brains and purple are wonderfully fresh takes while acoustic lead the cure (she’s not even trying to hide it anymore), is undoubtedly the most impressive songwriting there is on here. Those beautiful harmonies and soaring, urgent strings bring together one of Rodrigo’s best. It’s wildly refreshing and oh so divinely inspired.

” While the slowed-tempo synth throbs and low-tone guitar yearns are not subtle in telling you what scene they reside themselves in; it makes for a wicked reimagining of a gothic-pop record in the 21st Century. “

The record has no plans to stagnate with another devastating drive-by via begged while less introduces soulful piano trills that reminded me a little too much of McLachlan’s When She Loved Me – which alas, brought it all up again. Swamped in synths, expectations adds a little gloss to much-needed pick-me-up while the album’s pioneering move ends with cigarette smoke – another endearing classic that hits all the feels. Wonderful. You’ll notice that I may have skipped over that song, the catalyst that perhaps set the wheels in motion for Olivia’s third.

Playing a surprise set at Primavera Sound in Barcelona, Rodrigo performed the debut duet of what’s wrong with me with The Cure’s Robert Smith. A beautifully moving premier, Olivia also revealed this upcoming album on that very stage further solidifying that perhaps a studio session with your childhood hero was the reason for making a full album around it…

An endearing album bringing together fans new and old of scenes come by, Rodrigo’s you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love is a delightful tribute to a songwriter who paved the way to what we hear in pop today. The record is a wickedly fresh take on one of the most glamourised genres to date, as it paints Olivia’s exemplary songwriting skills in a whole new light. Or should I say dark? Get the eyeliner out.