Pop artist, Olivia Rodrigo, recently released her second album GUTS September 8th, 2023. Complete with 12 original tracks, Rodrigo touches on the struggles of a woman figuring out how she fits into society as a young adult. The album contains a mix of soft emotional songs along with pop-rock tracks that will get you singing along.
“all-american bitch”
“All american bitch” begins with a soft, melodic tune that progressively gets more pop-rock. Rodrigo appeals to a female audience when she crudely lists the things that make an “all american bitch” before changing her tone completely with an outro of sickly sweet words of affirmation, “I’m grateful all the fucking time, I’m sexy and I’m kind, I’m pretty when I cry.” The constant and unpredictable shifts in tone support the overall message of the song and the confusing feelings that come with being a seemingly perfect individual in the eyes of the media.
“bad idea right?”
“Bad idea right?” is the second track on the album with an upbeat, soft rock tune. Rodrigo seems to be having an internal argument with herself about whether or not she should get back with an ex, followed by the chorus of the song where she begins justifying the situation. There is an underlying sense throughout the song that Rodrigo knows she shouldn’t reconnect with this person from her past but is going to do it anyway.
“vampire”
The third song on GUTS, is the lead single and most popular track on the album. “Vampire” has emotional lyrics with heavy piano coming through. Much like the title insinuates, there are vampire references scattered throughout the song, implying the strange behaviors of her ex is similar to the negative lore that follows a vampire. References such as, “bleeding me dry like a goddamn vampire” and “you sunk your teeth into me” gives the listener insight as to what happens when you look back at a relationship during which you ignored the red flags.
“lacy”
The first song on the album that is softer and more emotional is the fourth track, “lacy.” Rodrigo writes about a character,Lacy, who is seemingly perfect and whom she’s deeply jealous of. These sickly sweet lyrics comparing Lacy to stereotypical perfect things such as: angel dust, white daisies, and hair ribbons, paint the picture of what the artist believes is the vision of perfection. Throughout the song, Rodrigo’s seemingly harmless jealousy turns aggressive with the line “I just loathe you lately, and I despise my jealous eyes and how hard they fell for you.”
“ballad of a homeschooled girl”
“Ballad of a homeschooled girl” is fairly similar to “brutal” from Rodrigo’s debut album, Sour. The line “social suicide” is used during the chorus to represents how Rodrigo feels as if she cannot be herself without damaging her reputation.
“making the bed”
The metaphor, making the bed, is used when an individual is complaining about problems that they created for themselves. Rodrigo uses this metaphor to prompt her lyrical choices, hence the title and the chorus, “but it’s me who’s been making the bed.” This song oozes raw emotion as Rodrigo contemplates the consequences that follow the decisions she’s made. Rodrigo recognizes that she could’ve done something sooner yet denied help and chose to drag it on by singing “Push away all the people who know me the best, but it’s me who’s been making the bed.”
“logical”
“Logical” is a softly sung, almost weepy track that perfectly portrays the feeling of knowing a situation isn’t right for you, yet second guessing yourself because of what could have been. Rodrigo often writes about her struggle with letting go of the past and this song in particular touches on the roller coaster of emotions that comes with not knowing what to do. Rodrigo uses contradiction to display this internal conflict in lines such as, “You got me thinking two plus two equals five, and I’m the love of your life.”
“get him back!”
Revenge is simple to Rodrigo; make your ex regret losing you. This pop song is all about getting back at her ex-partner, as seen in the line, “I wanna get him back. I wanna make him really jealous, wanna make him feel bad.” Much like the first couple of songs on the album, this song is upbeat yet gives the listener a total 180 as they compare the previous themes of regret to the current theme of revenge.
“love is embarrassing”
“Love is embarrassing” follows suit with multiple of Rodrigo’s previous songs in the album. This is a pop rock song with lyrics that are laced with regret. Yet during this track she admits to things most people wouldn’t. The realization that she gave more than she was given and still ended up on the losing side is the message of this track. It’s best shown when she wrote, “Just watch as I crucify myself, for some weird second-string, loser who’s not worth mentioning.”
“the grudge”
“The grudge” is an emotional, raw track that carries the poeticism that is continuously seen in Rodrigo’s music. The poetic essence of the song can be seen in the lines, “trust that you betrayed, confusion that still lingers, you took everything I loved and crushed it in between your fingers,” and, “your flowers filled with vitriol.” Rodrigo makes many connections to her feelings and compares them to how low she felt after the end of a relationship.
“pretty isn’t pretty”
This track on GUTS is the most similar to the theme of her debut album, Sour, in the sense that it touches on issues of femininity. Towards the beginning of the song, Rodrigo acknowledges unhealthy behaviors she exhibits in an attempt to be “pretty enough.” This includes hiding behind makeup out of insecurity and skipping meals to be thinner. She can’t help but compare herself to the pretty people that the media showcases and the stereotypes they uphold.
“teenage dream”
The last track on Rodrigo’s new album is mellow and conveys the message of feeling confined to being a teenage success. She writes lines like, “When am I gonna stop being great for my age and just start being good,” and, “When am I gonna stop being wise beyond my years and just start being wise,” to depict this feeling of confinement. She seems to be wishing away her teenage years, but fears she has already hit her peak.
From jealousy to regret to revenge, GUTS jumps around various genres to accurately depict the strange and uncertain mindset of a young woman . It’s safe to say, Rodrigo has successfully avoided the sophomore album slump.
