Six albums in and almost exactly 10 years since the release of her commercial breakout with Kiss, Carly Rae Jepsen’s status as a pop music cult figure of sorts is still going strong. But when you have albums like 2015’s E•MO•TION, which appeared on countless year-end lists and arguably played a big part in today’s … Continue reading Carly Rae Jepsen – The Loneliest Time
Dance Pop
Charlie Puth – CHARLIE
It truly seems like you never know what to expect when you hit play on a Charlie Puth album. Not because he’s wildly experimental – but because he’s now delivered an awful album, an incredible one, and one that’s perfectly mediocre, the latter being his latest, CHARLIE. After the widely acclaimed pop-R&B fusion of 2018’s … Continue reading Charlie Puth – CHARLIE
BLACKPINK – BORN PINK
K-pop’s – really, the world’s – biggest girl group return two years after dropping their first official studio album, appropriately titled The Album. Just as short as the last one and as many of their previous EPs and compilations, Born Pink stands at a tight eight tracks and finds the group continuing to follow their … Continue reading BLACKPINK – BORN PINK
YUNGBLUD – YUNGBLUD
For all of the members of the tight-knit modern-day mainstream pop-punk crowd, YUNGBLUD presents an interesting phenomenon – he’s the one who seems like he belongs the least, trying too hard to be wild and crazy in order to align with the tired “welcome to the freakshow” narratives, but listening to his music consistently gives … Continue reading YUNGBLUD – YUNGBLUD
Lauv – All 4 Nothing
California alt-pop singer Lauv is just about one of the last bastions of the bland and bro-approved world of self-pitying sadboi pop who hasn’t yet migrated over to the burgeoning pop-punk scene. Racking up collaborations with globe-spanning acts like Anne-Marie and BTS and writing songs for acts as diverse as Charli XCX and Celine Dion, … Continue reading Lauv – All 4 Nothing
Lizzo – Special
It truly doesn’t feel like we’ve been waiting nearly 3 and a half years in between Lizzo projects. Ever since breaking through to the mainstream after the public finally discovered her catalogue of charming, meme-able and empowering pop-rap chaos, she’s been a nearly omnipresent cultural force. Breaking through to acting, appearing on scores of reality … Continue reading Lizzo – Special
Drake – Honestly, Nevermind
The jokes write themselves with the title, don’t they? Only nine months after the biggest artist in the world released the much-ridiculed but still wildly successful Certified Lover Boy, Drake returns with his surprise-dropped 7th studio album, seemingly in an attempt to push the boundaries of how little effort he can put into a #1 … Continue reading Drake – Honestly, Nevermind
George Ezra – Gold Rush Kid
Soulful UK folk-pop vocalist George Ezra hasn’t released a studio album since 2018, but he’s been steadily building his brand as one of his home country’s most recognizable musical figures through other lanes in the meantime. Fresh off of being invited to perform for the Queen, his third project Gold Rush Kid certainly takes things … Continue reading George Ezra – Gold Rush Kid
Lights – PEP
Releasing on a relatively quiet week, Canadian indie and electropop icon Lights – though not incredibly well-known outside of her home country – has been getting some extra attention lately with her fifth studio album, PEP. Known for genre-bending (her recent output has included a side project representing somewhat of a dubstep revival and a … Continue reading Lights – PEP
Charli XCX – CRASH
Even when Charli XCX, an artist typically regarded as one of the most forward-thinking pop stars on the planet, half-jokingly refers to her latest album as her “sellout era,” you can still expect a couple subversive twists alongside the catchy, stadium-ready hooks that she’s so experienced at crafting. While the British alt-pop sensation’s latest certainly … Continue reading Charli XCX – CRASH
Ben's Beat - Music Reviews 