Not gonna lie, the Nexus office divas were fighting over who would get to review Olivia Rodrigo’s debut album, SOUR. I said “if you don’t let me, it’ll be my next playlist”. Then I got a message from a friend asking “plz make your next playlist this whole album” so give the people what they want xoxo

 

  1. brutal 

Hands down my favourite on the album, a stunning portrait of adolescence with a dirty guitar riff that calls back to Rogue Traders ‘Voodoo Child’. 

 

  1. traitor

A big fuck you to all people who are on Ross’ side in the “we were on a break” debate; it’s not about semantics here folks, it’s about loyalty. 

 

  1. drivers license

I don’t need to mansplain this song to you. She’s an icon, she’s a legend and she is The Moment. 

 

  1. 1 step forward, 3 steps back

Swifties will have picked up on the fact that the piano sounds exactly like ‘New Year’s Day’. Turns out Antonoff and Swift get a writing credit; but it’s not a sample, it’s an interpolation, meaning Rodrigo played the piano herself so Scooter Braun gets no royalties. A queen.

 

  1. deja vu 

Shout out to producer Dan Nigro. The real hero of this song is the nuanced production and fresh take on bedroom pop. 

 

  1. good 4 u

The modern ‘Misery Business’ with less problematic lyrics and the sickest bassline. 

 

  1. enough for you

We’ve all been there, bending over backwards to be the destination for someone who will never consider you more than a pit stop. Olivia brings that to life in the most heart wrenching ballad on the album. 

 

  1. happier

Another melancholic piano ballad in the vein of Rihanna’s ANTI era. I may be way too invested in Disney Channel drama but it’s hard not to be when her songwriting is this visceral.

 

  1. jealousy, jealousy

Revisits the themes of femininity under atttack from ‘brutal’, and yet again I ask the question, when the fuck are we going to stop making fun of teenage girls for merely exisiting? 

 

  1. favorite crime

Not my favourite track but still good. Nothing on this album is bad, but my one critique is that it needed a few more big electric guitar bangers to round out all the sad girl hours. 

 

  1. hope ur ok

The last track is poetry dedicated to some specific people in Rodrigo’s life as well as her broader audience. A wonderful final send off. ❤️