by Alex Goode
Hey, everyone. Stillthony Latetano here, back with another less-than-timely album review. I'm not too off with this one, though, only about four weeks roughly. This time, I wanna talk about the new Billie Eilish record: Happier Than Ever. I'm willing to bet you've heard of Billie Eilish, she's pretty popular. She very quickly rose to fame when her song "Ocean Eyes" blew up, ultimately leading to the release of her don't smile at me EP in 2017. That project definitely has some hits, but I think it's overall a pretty mixed bag. And then there's the case of her debut album, WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?, which dropped in 2019. I think that LP is very good, a super solid full-length debut. And now, Billie has returned once more with her sophomore album, the highly-anticipated "Happier Than Ever". It released on July 30th of 2021, and I was looking forward to it quite a bit. I thought a lot of the singles from it were pretty good, and I dig the aesthetic of the cover art (especially in contrast to that of WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP). I'm a little late, but now I'm finally getting around to listening to it and giving my thoughts on it. There's a total of 16 tracks on here, so I have quite a bit of ground to cover.
The album kicks off on a high note with the intro song, "Getting Older". I like this song quite a bit. For starters, the lyrics are haunting. Billie gets pretty introspective with this one, and I think it's great. Special shout out goes to the "Wasn't my decision to be abused" line, that one hurt. I also enjoy the more laid back instrumental, with the plucky synths and the subtle pianos that are sprinkled in throughout. I do think that Billie's voice is a bit too loud in the mix, though, it drowns out the beat on multiple occasions. That's more or less just a nitpick, however. At least she sounds great, I especially love the vocal run she does when she sings the word weird in the chorus. It's no surprise that her voice is gorgeous, though. Following this, we have "I Didn't Change My Number". The very start of the track, with the barking dog sample, was a bit too much, but I like how the barking fits into the percussion later on. The beat overall on this one is pretty nice, I like the staccato organ loop and the punchy kicks. I will say, though, that low, stuttering synth-line that hits after the second chorus is really ugly. Did Finneas sample a washing machine? Whatever it is, it throws off the vibe of the instrumental in a really bad way. The rest of the song is pretty cool, though. Billie's voice is once again great, the mixing is better on this one, the vocal layering on the chorus is beautiful, and she sounds vicious on this. Sounds like she's been holding this in for a while. Also, the way she sings "and your best friend, too", is pretty funny. This song is followed by "Billie Bossa Nova", which I think is the first outright great song on the LP. The beat is laid-back but still hard, Billie's vocal delivery is nice, it has a good structure, and I really like how confident Billie sounds. The lyrics are a lot more sexual in nature on this one, and Billie sounds really confident as she's delivering it. This song is also mixed very well. Billie's voice is about as loud on here as it was on "Getting Older", but it doesn't stick out as much this time around because there's more going on in the instrumental. The production is pretty nice on this one, Finneas did a great job. The immediate next track, "my future", is one of the singles. It was released a full year before this album did, so it's a little odd to see it be placed here. I thought it was just okay when I first heard it, but it's grown on me quite a bit since then. I think it fits the theme of the album nicely, so I can't really be too mad at its inclusion. The first half is a little slow, almost to the point of being kinda boring to listen to, but it really picks up when the second verse hits. It's amazing what a drum machine will add to a vibe, isn't it? As slow as the first part is, I gotta give Billie credit yet again for her stellar vocals. The runs she does on the chorus are so smooth, and the overall melody is very pretty. I don't know why I thought this track was so mid when I first heard it, it's pretty good for the most part. It also probably has one of my favorite lyrics out of any Billie track when she says "Know I'm supposed to be unhappy without someone, but aren't I someone?". That's powerful, that's something I needed to hear.
Moving on, we have "Oxytocin". I find this song to be a mixed bag, to be honest. The beat is insanely good, I bet it would go crazy live, and I like the mixing on the whole thing. I think the parts where Billie goes up into her higher register sounds really nice as well, she has a good control on her voice. However, some of the lyrics get a little uncomfortable. Maybe she's singing from the perspective of her abuser on this one, that would make a lot of sense actually, but I still don't think a song with lyrics like "Don't wanna treat you well" and "Cause, as long as you're still breathing, don't you even think of leaving" fits an album like this. In an album where you've made it clear you're gonna be venting about your trauma, why include a song in which is sounds like you're about to hurt someone else in the same way? Maybe I'm reading too much into it, I don't know, but I felt like that was worth saying. To end on a more positive note, the beat slaps (like I mentioned before). I dunno, I'm not too crazy about this one overall. The next track, however, "GOLDWING", is the exact opposite. I love this song, it's so pretty. The beat is great, I like the loop of Billie crooning the title that adds to the instrumental, and the intro is absolutely stunning. The lyrics are nicely-written, it has one of the best vocal performances on the whole project, I think this might be my favorite song on this LP. Might even be my favorite Billie song outright, but I'd need to give it a few more listens before I can make a decision on that. I knew after my first listen that this track was gonna be a tough act to follow, but, thankfully, the next track, "Lost Cause", is one I already knew I liked going into it (given how it was one of the singles). Like with "Getting Older", the vocals are mixed a bit too high in the master, but this is another example where it doesn't bug me as much as it usually would. The beat for this one, like with a few others, is more laid-back, but it still goes hard. The bassline is smooth, the organ melody is cute, the kicks are nice. All around, the production on this one is really good. And the lyrics are really mean, in a good way. It kinda reminds me of "Don't Hurt Yourself" from Beyoncé's Lemonade album, which is a good thing. That song is brutal lyrically, and so is this one. This is probably the most fiery chorus Billie has ever recorded. Billie's vocals have the same vibe as the beat does, to me: Laid-back, but still effective. This song rocked when I first heard it, and it still rocks today. The following track, "Halley's Comet", is a tonal whiplash, but not in a bad way. "Lost Cause" was a fun dirty laundry track, and "Halley's Comet" is just sad. Billie is no stranger to emotional tracks, don't smile at me was full of them, but this one hits a little different than the rest of them. The lyrics are brutally raw, the piano load is absolutely luscious, Billie's vocals are gorgeous. There's not really a lot to say about it, really. It's emotional, it's raw, it's heartbreaking, it's really good. I'm into it.
"Not My Responsibility" is probably the biggest shock of an inclusion to the tracklist for me, given how it's not really a song, but I am so happy that it's here. I say it's not a "song", because I don't really see it as a song. I see it more as a statement, and one that really needs to be made. It's a spoken word passage set to a synth lead that sounds like a siren and a cowbell hit. That's it, cause it doesn't need an intricate beat. It probably didn't even need a beat at all, cause the focus isn't on the music. It's all about the message, and this is a great message. I'm really glad that she put this out there, and I hope people listen to what she's saying. The ending leads into the following track very nicely, so I'll move onto it now. I think "OverHeated" is a solid track. It's essentially "Not My Responsibility 2" (cause the beat is made out of the same instruments as that one's was, plus a few new ones), but that's not a bad thing. The best thing about this song is the lyrics, as well as the way Billie delivers them. She sounds pissed off, and she channels that energy into a strong song. I really like the confident chorus, also, especially when she says "Can't be repeated". There could never be another Billie Eilish, because there already is one. Like with the previous track, I'm really glad Billie made this. The next track, "Everybody Dies", is about exactly what you think it's about: Lamenting over the fact that life isn't permanent. I do like how the theme is presented, though. She muses about when she herself will die, and ends it off by essentially saying it's okay to not want to die. There's still the harsh, lingering truth that it's going to happen regardless of whether or not you're prepared for it, but it's good to have an artist with a platform say that fear is okay. Might not seem like a big deal to some people, but I think it's a good message to put out there. Just because something has to happen, it doesn't mean you have to like it. And the song this message is told in is pretty okay. It's not one I'm crazy about, but I wouldn't change the station if it came on the radio. The way she said the word "lies" in the first verse sounds extremely off (it's like she spontaneously lost her voice in the middle of recording), and I once again think her vocals are a little too loud in the mix, but, other than that, there's not much to talk about. Her voice sounds nice, the lyrics are good, and the more ambient instrumentation is always appreciated, but there's not much else to this track. I like the song, it just doesn't leave a big impact on me. The next song, however, "Your Power" (another one of the singles), is one I like quite a bit. This one also has the issue of loudly-mixed vocals (and it's probably the worst example on the whole project), but I can look past it because of just how powerful the lyrics are. There's speculation about who she's referring to, even though Billie herself said it's not about anyone specific, but I really don't think a song like this always has to have a certain target. Straight from the opening lyric, it's clear that Billie means business. She has some things she wants to say, and she most certainly says them. The structure of this song is nice as well, it features what is probably the mos stripped back instrumental out of all of the tracks. It's an acoustic guitar ballad from front to back, though it's hard to fully immerse myself in it because the vocals drown it out for most of it. There's no denying the power that this song has, though. I'm really glad it was made.
From one single to another, the next track is "NDA". I'm just gonna come right out and say it, this is my favorite of all the singles. I love this song so much, it is a banger. The distorted scream in the intro, the plucky electric guitar hits that lead into the chorus (could also be a mandolin, I'm not too sure), the crunchy kicks in the hook. The production and instrumental on this track is insane. And the chorus goes much harder than I expected it would upon first listen. The vocal layering, the thumping bass, the punchy kicks, even the autotune. I think it all comes together super well and makes for a great sound. I like the story that the lyrics tell also, and the callbacks to earlier song titles in the second verse is appreciated as well. Billie's more subdued vocals add to the hype of the track greatly, too. This song is fantastic and I love it. The vibe is followed perfectly by the next track, "Therefore I Am" (another single). This is yet another awesome song. The badass chorus, the perfect transition into it from "NDA", the kicks, the piano flourishes, the vocal layering. This song didn't need to go that hard, but it did anyway. I like the almost nonchalant way that Billie performs on this song, it's really fun to listen to. "Fun" is also a word that can describe this song in general, it's a blast to listen to. It's another one of my favorites here. I knew I loved it when it released as a single, and I still love it now. This song bangs, but I think the next track, "Happier Than Ever", is my favorite song on the whole album. Forget what I said about "GOLDWING" earlier, the title track is the top dog of this LP. It starts off as a slow, acoustic guitar ballad, with Billie crooning out a very heavy first verse. She sounds pretty good, I actually think the mix on her vocals is quite nice on this one. The lyrics feel like they're coming from a place of realism, and I like the way she delivers it. But then it starts to pick up the pace starting with the second verse, until it finally explodes into a straight-up rock ballad. It's so good. I legit think that "Happier Than Ever" is one of the best songs of the year so far. I love the reflective lyrics, Billie's energy on this is super infectious, the production on the outro is really good, the screaming at the end sounds manic as hell. I love everything about this song, and I'm really glad it exists. She sounds like she's having so much fun recording this, and I can't get enough of it. And that brings us to the closing track, "Male Fantasy". I think this one makes for the perfect finale for this project, and it tonally follows the title track very nicely. In "Happier Than Ever", Billie was screaming about how she doesn't need the person who abused her anymore, but now she's softly confessing that she's likely never going to truly get over them. Not only is that heartwrenching, but it's also very real. I think it was a good choice to close the album on this more bittersweet note, rather than with the angry energy of the title track. And, sonically speaking, I think this song is pretty good. It's another guitar ballad with rather loudly-mixed vocals, and it goes over very well here. It arguably has the most brutally depressing chorus on the whole project, also. I wanna give a special shout out to the second verse, I really enjoy what that section did for the song (and for the LP as a whole). I'm very much in awe of this song, I think it's the exact closer that an album like this should have. Well done, Billie and Finneas. Y'all killed it.
And that was Happier Than Ever. I enjoyed that quite a lot. I think WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP was more consistently enjoyable, but there's still a lot to love about this sophomore release. My favorite tracks were "Happier Than Ever", "NDA", "Billie Bossa Nova", "Therefore I Am", and "GOLDWING". And my least favorite tracks, if I had to pick a few, were "I Didn't Change My Number", "Everybody Dies", and, I guess, "Oxytocin". I dunno, the uncomfortable lyrics on that one really soured the track for me. All in all, I'm feeling a 7/10 on Happier Than Ever. It doesn't outdo WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have legs of its own to stand on. There's quite a number of tracks on here that I will definitely be coming back to a lot, and I look forward to whatever it is that Billie has planned to follow this LP with in the future. I guess only time will tell.
