Song of the Week: It’s All Bad Blood for Olivia Rodrigo on “vampire”
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The post Song of the Week: It’s All Bad Blood for Olivia Rodrigo on “vampire” appeared first on Consequence.
Song of the Week delves into the fresh songs we just can’t get out of our heads. Find these tracks and more on our Spotify Top Songs playlist, and for our favorite new songs from emerging artists, check out our Spotify New Sounds playlist. This week, Olivia Rodrigo sinks her teeth in with “vampire.”
There’s something deeply frustrating about the cycles young women are put through time and time again in the entertainment world. The latest rising starlet or singer, shiny and bright, is beloved — until she reaches oversaturation, when people pick her apart. Often within that same timeframe, an older man comes into the picture, and it feels weird, but everyone kind of shrugs and moves on. Our rising star finds her light severely dimmed by the time the whirlwind process is over, and then it repeats with the next one.
Olivia Rodrigo, at all of 20 years old, seems determined to break that cycle.
“vampire” is Rodrigo’s first new music since the chart-topping 2021 smash SOUR, a record that set her on the aforementioned path to fame and all its joys and trappings, complete with the older boyfriend who appeared when she was just 18. This relationship, and some of the other frustrations that come with being thrust in the spotlight in an even grander way than she anticipated, are the subject of this first taste of her forthcoming record, GUTS.
“Every girl I ever talked to told me you were bad, bad news/ You called them crazy, God, I hate the way I called them crazy too/ You’re so convincing/ How do you lie without flinching?” she asks on the track, describing a manipulative partner before digging further into the dynamic: “Went for me and not her, because girls your age know better.”
Sonically, it’s not a huge leap for Rodrigo — “vampire” could easily slot itself into SOUR, but the fact that she didn’t feel the need to completely revamp her sound is refreshing in its own way, too. For an artist still so young, both in age and in the scope of their career, she’s giving herself the space to develop her sound as she sees fit, and she has clearly historically felt at home in this edgy pop space, tinged with hallmarks and nods to artists like Paramore and Taylor Swift who laid the groundwork for a deeply personal, confessional songwriting style.
As with much of her other work, “vampire” makes us feel like we’re being let in on a secret. And, while the premise of the song indicates that this nightmare relationship has bled her dry, she’s never sounded more alive.
— Mary Siroky
Associate Editor
Honorable Mentions:
Slow Pulp – “Slugs”
Chicago-based indie rock band Slow Pulp have just announced Yard, the follow up to their lauded 2020 debut Moveys. Along with the announcement comes new track “Slugs,” which combines their hazy slacker rock with warm, effervescent hooks. Like its namesake, the track inches along slowly, bubbling up with fuzzy guitars and intimate vocals from Emily Massey. It’s appropriately tailored for hot summer drives, the messy, churning guitars serving as a backdrop for nostalgic reflections. — Paolo Ragusa
Oscar Lang – “On God”
Another moving slice from Lang’s upcoming album Look Now, “On God” is a piano-rooted slow burn that finds the British songwriter embracing his inner balladeer. He appears to ponder the afterlife on the track’s melancholy verses, eventually landing on the evocative statement, “So I hold out on God/ Just to see you there.” As he arrives at both choruses, a flood of reverb-drenched harmonies ring out behind him, letting the song’s rich atmosphere take him in its tides. It’s restrained but seriously emotional, showing that Oscar Lang can wield significant power just sitting at a piano. — P. Ragusa
Small Crush – “5”
Whimsy, youth, and nostalgia are baked into “5,” the latest from indie-rock quartet Small Crush. The group takes the concept of backyard band literally with the quick, easy track and its accompanying visual, leading with their inviting, homegrown energy. We can only wish the song was longer — at just under two minutes, it feels like a tease of all the fun Small Crush still have to share. — M. Siroky
MINOE – “Cut Me Loose”
In case you haven’t heard, disco is very much back, baby. With “Cut Me Loose,” the rising Canadian pop artist adds to the energy we’ve received lately from folks like Jessie Ware and Dua Lipa, with this track in particular recalling Ware’s 2020 disco-pop album What’s Your Pleasure? — while it’s bright and bubbly, there’s just a hint of lyrical melancholy that makes the dance floor feel like a place for a particular kind of catharsis. — M. Siroky
Jean Ryden – “Chlorine”
Los Angeles singer-songwriter Jean Ryden introduces herself with the entrancing, orchestral debut single, “Chlorine.” The slow build to this song is somewhat haunting, appropriate for a track pulled from very real grief Ryden has spent years processing around the death of her mother. At the same time, there’s a dreaminess to “Chlorine,” which has arrived ahead of a debut project, titled Parallel Universe — there’s certainly a wistfulness here that conjures up the desire to explore all that would’ve, could’ve, and should’ve been in life. — M. Siroky
Truth Club – “Blue Eternal”
Now signed to Double Double Whammy, the newest track from North Carolina indie rockers Truth Club finds the band playing it fast, loose, and noisy. In comparison to the shuffling, groovy “It’s Time,” which the band dropped earlier this year, “Blue Eternal” keeps the volume loud and the pace quick — and they pull it off just as spectacularly. From the wall of shoegazy guitars to the relentless rhythm section, “Blue Eternal” only serves to further cement the creative, varied songwriting abilities of this band on the rise. — Jonah Krueger
Empty Country – “Pearls”
It’s been about three years since we’ve heard from Empty Country, the project spearheaded by Joseph D’Agostino of Cymbals Eat Guitars. Luckily for fans of their emotionally-strained indie rock, the act is back with their first new material since their 2020 self-titled debut. Musically, “Pearl” picks right off where Empty Country left off, striking the balance between Hold Steady-esque roots rock and the noisy, experimental indie of D’Agostino’s former band. Despite clocking in at nearly six minutes in length, “Pearls” remains unpredictable and exciting, boding extremely well for any other new music coming from the band. — J.K
Pool Kids – “No Stranger”
Less than a year after coming through with one of the most exciting rock albums of 2022, Pool Kids return with a surprise split EP with their hardcore alter-ego, POOL. The EP features low-key versions of standout Pool Kids cuts “Talk Too Much” and “Arm’s Length,” while the back half boasts gnarly riffs, hard-as-nails breakdowns, and shrieking vocals. What might interest fans of the band the most, however, is the single new Pool Kids track the EP has to offer, “No Stranger.” More subdued and contemplative than the dynamic, genre-bending songs found on Pool Kids, the tune finds the Florida band at their most gentle. Somehow, though, they’re able to squeeze just as much catharsis out of it as any of POOL’s rageful, blistering bangers. — J.K
Top Songs Playlist:
Song of the Week: It’s All Bad Blood for Olivia Rodrigo on “vampire”
Mary Siroky and Consequence Staff
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