While known for her songs and album about love, depression, and the struggles of being a young adult in the modern world, girl in red took a new spin on her music with her new album “I’M DOING IT AGAIN BABY”. Taking her lyrical skills and iconic indie style that introduced many young people to the genre, girl in red shifts her style from pondering the depressions of life to shouting her name from the rooftops through her songs.
The opening track “I’m Back” declares her return to the audience and immediately shows off how her attitude and thoughts about life has changed, stating “I’m back, I’m better than ever.” With catchy synth and her iconic vocals, “I’m Back” certainly caught my attention and the chorus instantly got stuck in my head. Next was the title track; “DOING IT AGAIN BABY”, which changes up the vibe with instrumentals and lyrics that make you feel unstoppable.
One of my personal favorite tracks is “Too Much”, where instead of celebrating or mourning a relationship, girl in red expresses her frustration over how her partner has treated her in the relationship. With its catchy drums in the back combined with a catchy melody, “Too Much” is one of the best songs off the album in my opinion.
Never one to stray from her love songs, “Phantom Pain”, “A Night To Remember”, “Pick Me” and “New Love” tell the story of the end of a relationship that the singer blames the other partner for, but also longs for the person and is jealous when they move on. Across the four songs, girl in red demonstrates her musical range by not sticking to one similar setup. “Pick Me” has a soft, twinkling piano background to it that slowly begins to swell into more a soft pop, while “Phantom Pain” is more guitar-driven and has a faster pace to it. These four songs work very well back-to-back and represent the variety across the album as a whole.
“Ugly Side” is also a callback to girl in red’s earlier album, where the singer wonders if her “ugly side” makes her unlovable and questions why she has “these ugly thoughts”. Compared to the heavy dealing of the lyrics, the instrumentals are very standard pop with a noticeable R&B tang to it. R&B elements can be seen across the album, but the closing track “★★★★★” is definitely R&B with soulful synth and fast paced R&B drums making the closing track a smooth ending to this varied album.
The star of the album is girl in red’s collaboration with rising pop star Sabrina Carpenter, “You Need Me Now?”. Rock-driven, sassy, and a dopamine-hit of a song that calls out an ex for their bad behavior in a relationship and their attempts to get them back, “You Need Me Now?” cements girl in red’s spot as one of the best popular indie artists in the industry in this generation.
Overall, “I’M DOING IT AGAIN BABY” is an exciting new look into where girl in red is taking her music next. With the variety of themes, moods, and instrumentals, “I’M DOING IT AGAIN BABY” is a very fun album to listen to.
