By: Ethan Juhasz
The ‘Sophomore Album Curse,’ which refers to the phenomenon when an artist’s second album fails to live up to the hype of their initial album, is a common trend for artists — and I wouldn’t be lying when I said that I had some initial anxieties leading up to the release of Olivia Rodrigo’s new album, “GUTS.” Rodrigo’s first album, “SOUR,” topped charts and was nominated for seven Grammy awards. Its hit singles “Driver’s License,” “Deja Vu” and my personal favorite, “Good 4 U” all charted in the top 10 of the U.S. Billboard Top 100. Needless to say, there were high expectations for Rodrigo to surpass her previous successes when this album was announced.
Going into the new album, I was anxious. “SOUR’s” angst-filled tracklist largely consisted of songs about an awful ex-boyfriend and Rodrigo’s feelings about the breakup. While this trope of the ‘relationship-gone-wrong’ isn’t necessarily bad, I wanted something a little more from Rodrigo’s new album. The few songs in “SOUR” where Rodrigo confronted topics other than just a bad relationship, such as “jealousy, jealousy” or “brutal,” were excellent and proved that Rodrigo was not only capable of but also really good at offering commentary on other topics.
I was really hoping that we would see more like that in “GUTS,” but the two pre-released singles “bad idea, right?” and “vampire” were still angsty rants about an ex, even though they were both excellent songs landing in my personal top five Olivia Rodrigo tracks. I really enjoyed both songs, but my hopes were not incredibly high going into the release of “GUTS.” However, I am pleased to say that “GUTS” has both subverted my expectations and proved that Rodrigo has quite a bit more to her as an artist than just the ‘heartbroken ex-girlfriend.’
The emotions and themes of “SOUR” certainly still resonate within “GUTS” — Rodrigo’s ‘teenage angst’ energy and anger towards the people that have hurt her shine through in songs such as “the grudge” and “logical,” but instead of being the focus of the album, it ends up becoming an excellent compliment that makes “GUTS” feel like an extension of “SOUR.” Immediately from the start of the album, the high-energy opener, “all-american bitch,” sets the scene where Rodrigo’s seemingly ‘perfect’ life is slowly cracking apart and everything may not be as perfect as it seems.
From there, “GUTS” launches into a collection of excellent songs covering a wide variety of topics, from “making the bed,” which tackles the difficulties of growing up, to “pretty isn’t pretty,” which discusses the impossible beauty standards for women and “ballad of a homeschooled girl,” a grungy anthem of social anxieties and the struggles of growing up away from ‘normal’ teen culture. It’s well-spoken, intelligent and extremely diverse in content — but on top of the lyricism, the musicality of “GUTS” is also amazing. There is so much variation in the style of “GUTS” but in such a way that they all still feel like part of the same album. Those who enjoy pop-punk music will find a love for songs such as “bad idea, right?” “ballad of a homeschooled girl,” “get him back!” and “love is embarrassing,” while fans of slow, sad ballads will absolutely adore “lacy,” “the grudge,” “vampire,” and “logical.” In all, “GUTS” is well-spoken, excellently composed, diverse and unique. Rodrigo thoroughly dispels any notion of the ‘Sophomore Album Curse’ with her album, culminating in the beautiful ballad “teenage dream” where Rodrigo herself confronts her own artistry and character as she finishes out her second album. In this track, she asks herself, “Yeah, they all say that it gets better, it gets better, but what if I don’t?” I have absolutely no doubt that Rodrigo will continue to surpass her own standards and get better, whatever she does.