By Claire Barickman A&E and Social Media Editor
Olivia Rodrigo took the pop world by storm in 2021 when she released her first single “drivers license” for her debut album “SOUR.” After the huge success of her first album, many people were worried if Olivia would be able to write an album that would have the same impact as the first. I’m here to tell you that Olivia Rodrigo did it again with “GUTS”. These twelve songs perfectly sum up what life is like for so many teenagers. With its heartfelt emotions and pop-punk fun, “GUTS” is everything we could have asked for and more. Olivia has found her sound along with the help of her producer, Dan Nigro.
The album opens with “all american b—-” which perfectly reflects what is to come throughout the rest of the album. The song starts with a soft guitar and light and airy singing from Olivia, but, after the beat drops, it adapts a pop-punk sound with the addition of percussion and a heavier guitar. The two main sounds that are carried out in the album are piano-based ballads and pop-punk with lots of percussion. Overall “all american b—-” does a wonderful job at getting the listener hooked and wanting more
Track two “bad idea right?” and track three “vampire” were both released before the rest of the album as singles. Both of these songs were perfect picks for singles because once again they are prime examples of the two styles that are featured in this album. The song “vampire” was the first of the two to be released and is a prime example of Olivia’s vocal and lyrical power. This song does a beautiful job at portraying the sadness and anger you feel when you get out of a relationship through its lyrics and the musical tension and build-up throughout the song. On the other hand, “bad idea right?” is an upbeat theme for anyone who is feeling a little reckless. The lyrics in this song are on the simpler side but that doesn’t take away from this very fun feel-good song.
Along with “bad idea right?” there are a total of six upbeat pop-rock songs on the tracklist. These six songs cover a wide variety of topics and events that have happened in Olivia’s life. In “ballad of a homeschooled girl”, Olivia writes about her social life and how she feels as though she is cursed by her social awkwardness. The blend of hilariously relatable lyrics and playful music makes this song one of my favorites on the album. A fan favorite of “GUTS” since its release has been “get him back!” This song perfectly encapsulates that feeling of not being able to decide if you want to get back with your ex or if you want to get revenge on them. “love is embarrassing” is exactly what it sounds like; a poppy song about looking back on all the embarrassing moments you had because you were in love. The final of these pop rock songs is “pretty isn’t pretty”. This song is like the older sister of “‘jealousy jealousy” off of “SOUR”, it still discusses the insecurities Olivia has but it deals with them more maturely with a message of accepting that she will never live up to all the standards society has and that’s okay.
The other half of this album is composed of her slower piano and vocal-focused songs. After “vampire”, the first of these songs is track four, “lacy”, which has a very angelic ambiance to it. Although this song sounds instrumentally and vocally very light and soft, the message is darker with its theme of envy becoming an obsession that you can’t get away from. “making the bed” is a song about Olivia’s experiences and social life now that her career has taken off. The title is a play on the phrase, “You’ve made your bed now lie in it.” Olivia reveals how she feels as though she is being self-destructive and is ruining everything she once loved. She achieved her dreams and got everything she wanted but it’s not what she anticipated. “logical” is another fan favorite. This crushing song is about being manipulated in a relationship with an older person and looking back on everything that happened and feeling stupid for not noticing all of the bad while you were in that situation. “the grudge” is a beautifully heartbreaking song about trying to move on. After being in a toxic relationship it can be difficult to try to “forgive and forget” to move on and that is exactly what this song portrays; the struggle to find the strength to forgive when you aren’t quite ready to forget or let go.
The closing track “teenage dream” is the perfect way to end this album. Olivia has been searching for this teenage dream since the beginning of her career and now it feels as though she found it, but it’s not what she had thought; she feels like she’s already hit her peak. This is the perfect portrayal of feeling like you were pushed to mature but now it’s like you grew up too fast and didn’t have a true teenage experience. This gorgeous song starts with a slow piano but as Olivia begins to spiral more about her future the song starts to build up until it hits its peak where the beat drops and percussion begins to take the lead.
Olivia Rodrigo truly has beaten the sophomore slump with this album. She has found the perfect balance between her fun and serious sides in her music. Overall “GUTS” has the same feel as “SOUR” but you can see the growth that Olivia has gone through as a person. This album is more self-reflective and mature but still has her fun and young energy sprinkled throughout. I definitely recommend this album if you are looking for something new and exciting to listen to.
