Ariana Grande - thank u, next

 

Why on earth, you may well ask, are you reviewing an Ariana Grande album? Basically, it is the fault of a contributor to a music forum that I belong to, who was frequently exasperated and perplexed by my lack of knowledge of and interest in what he regarded as essential popular culture. (He was outraged, for example, that I had no idea who Molly McAleer or Kobe Bryant were.)

But then he posted a review of thank u, next and suggested that I would be too closed-minded to even listen to it. Well, however woefully out of touch with many aspects of popular culture I am (and I really am), I dislike being thought of as not having an open mind... and this is how I ended up reviewing thank u, next.

I'd never actually heard of Ariana until the Manchester terrorist incident, and leading up to this review, this was the only thing I knew about her. Googling her, I found that she started out in a teen sitcom called Victorious, has sold a shedload of records and has dated several celebrities that I've never heard of. (I was momentarily intrigued by the notion that she'd stepped out with Peter Davison of Dr Who and All Creatures Great And Small fame, but this turned out to be a Peter Davidson.)

imagine

Before I started listening, the use of lower case and "U" in the album title immediately put me in mind of Prince. One of the things I liked about his best material was its sparseness; where he was prepared to leave gaps and not necessarily fill every space with noise and production. There certainly seems to be a Prince influence here; or at least there's a similar approach to leaving space for emphasis. The rhythm track is understated and delicate and there's a lot of room for the track to breathe and circle.

Everything is very carefully placed. The cynical side of me imagines that this was decided by some form of record company committee, but even if that is the case, you can't deny that, as an opener, it's open-ended, intriguing and scene-setting. There's a soul/R&B flavour undercutting everything, most notably in the clipped guitar arpeggios; the gradual build, denoted by the orchestral/string stabs, is effective without being overly grandiose (although it teeters on the brink).

I strongly suspect that I will struggle to empathise with many of the lyrical themes on the album, for reasons I imagine are obvious. I will probably have to google most of them as well, as - at the risk of sounding like my father watching TOTP with me back in the 80s - I can't always understand the words. 'imagine', though, is pretty straightforward lyrically, being about that first flush of excitement when you're with someone new and everything seems suddenly intimate and wonderful; like you'd suddenly invented being a couple. Lines like 'how my face fits so good in your neck' capture that feeling simplistically but effectively, although I'm not sure about the rhyming of 'secrets' with 'creep shit'.

needy

It opens with a relatively lo-fi little keyboard loop, one that you could almost imagine being the basis of a Boards of Canada song, and continues in a pretty understated fashion throughout, with only scant intrusions by bass or percussion. There are some slightly spaced-out strings that have a slightly late Beatles air to them towards the end.

Not what I expected: after the sparse, crisp down-tempo opener, I thought there'd be a classic track two 'banger'; this feels more like a penultimate track (the one that prefaces the epic closer). I quite admire her for sticking this here, although the melody is a little predictable, the lyrics are slightly inane ('I’m a little messed up / but I can hide it when I'm all dressed up') and the vocal verges on the twee.

NASA

Pleasant enough, but rather limp and insipid. Whereas imagine made me sit up and listen, NASA just drifted by apologetically.

bloodline

Ramps up the tempo a little, with a more aggressive beat than the last two and has a slightly ska/reggae-inflected rhythm. Lyrics are a bit banal and awkward here: 'You're the one that I'm thinkin' / Got me feelin' so incredible / would you mind maybe linkin'?' 

fake smile

Opens with an intriguing, scratchy R&B gospel sample before settling into a delicate if rather obvious groove. The lyrics seem to be about the pressure of leading a public life and have a heartfelt but somewhat banal quality: 'I read the things they write about me / Hear what they're saying on the TV, it's crazy'. 

bad idea

A bit of a diversion musically, opening with a clipped, chorus-heavy guitar line that verges on Cure/Police territory. But then it just lays a predictable R&B/soul melody over the top. It's not without its merits: the echoing, childlike backing vocals are quite arresting, and the orchestral interludes add a bit of colour; but overall it's a little pedestrian.

make up

A paean to make-up sex ('I like to f*ck with you / just to make up with you'), this has much more about it than the last few tracks. The jagged rhythm gives it an edgy feel and the stuttering vocals have a lascivious air.

ghostin

The dissonant, ghostly chords have an almost shoegaze/MBV tone to them, which provides an intriguing contrast to the smooth R&B vocals. It ultimately dissolves into a wall of syrupy strings. There's the germ of of an interesting idea here that isn't quite resolved.

in my head

The understated rhythm track is nicely sparse and atmospheric, but this feels like the same vocal melody is being trotted out again. Not sure about rhyming 'tennis shoes' with 'issues' either.

7 rings

A slow and sultry groove based around 'My Favourite Things', this is an inevitable example of the lyrics being beyond my frame of reference: I have no idea what, for example, 'My wrist, stop watchin', my neck is flossin' / Make big deposits, my gloss is poppin'' might mean. There is something very engaging about her vocal here, though: sassy but vulnerable.

thank u, next

This is another one where my lack of knowledge of popular culture might be limiting my understanding, as I have no idea who the Sean, Ricky and Malcolm referred to might be (if they are indeed real people). It's one of the stronger melodies on the album.

break up with your girlfriend, i'm bored

It's a great title, to be sure. However, the track - a light, reggae-ish lilt - is pretty unremarkable.

I am glad I listened to this album, if only for the opening 'imagine', which is a startlingly stark and beautiful piece of music. The rest of it has its ups and downs, although I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was nothing I actively disliked. I'm unlikely to listen to any of it again, to be honest, but it was worthwhile enough giving her a few hours of my time.

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