Rating — 10/10
Now, listening to Olivia Rodrigo is an absolute guilty pleasure of mine! And I was blown away by this album. Lyrically, it hits hard and has feel-good instrumentals. Sour was released on the 21st of May 2021, and it didn’t take long for me to learn the words to these anthems. Having had her singles plastered all over TikTok, it was hard to avoid her, with tunes such as ‘Driver’s License’, ‘Déjà vu’ and ‘Good 4 U’ hooking me. This album fits under so many different genres ranging from punk pop, alternative rock, pop rock, alternative pop and more.
1. Brutal
Starting off with a violin, sounding like it’s going to be a sweet tune, Rodrigo quickly shows that her High School Musical days are over as we are hit with a heavy bassline after she states, “I want it to be like messy”. Power chords on the guitar go up the neck and this chord progression remains throughout most of this song. Once the chorus arrives, the song gets even heavier, with the drums changing, from just playing the bass and it adds another layer to this song. This song explores the struggles Rodrigo is facing, which are typical, relatable teenage problems. No other song on this album, is as intense instrumentally as this one is, making this stand out, maybe why it opens the album as she may have felt like it would have been misplaced anywhere else in the album. Ending the song by returning to the violins, the song slows down, just like how it started. The lyrics “Got a broken ego, broken heart, And God I don’t even know where to start”, implies that throughout this album, Olivia is going to explore why these things are broken. My favourite line in this track is “If someone tells me one more time, ‘Enjoy your youth’, I’m gonna cry”.
2. Traitor
An angelic sounding “ooo’s and ahhh’s” open this track to carry us on from the ending of ‘Brutal’, giving a rather soft sounding song, with the addition of what I believe to be synth. We are instantly hit with a track about a breakup, which is what the majority of the songs on this album are about. We know this from the line “that you talked to her, maybe did even worse, I kept quiet so I could keep you”. This is an early sign considering how young Rodigo is, she is very emotionally mature, and this is evident in her writing. Singing directly to somebody in this track, we know that is a personal song about their relationship and the aftermath of it. As we enter the chorus, we can hear the pain in Olivia’s voice, in the line “you betrayed me”. It’s at this point that the song feels like it’s stepping up a level, with the bass and synth complimenting the sadness of the lyrics. It then returns to the quietly sang vocals and soft guitar playing in verse two. At the end of the next chorus, the music stops as the line “But you’re still a traitor” can be heard, and then we go into the bridge. Here we are taken to the most emotional part of the song where it feels like she is letting loose to the person this song is intended for. My favourite line of this track is “I guess you didn’t cheat, but you’re still a traitor”.
3. Driver’s License
This is the track that sent Olivia viral. From the beginning of the song, it’s competently crafted, with the sound of the car starting and the noise a car makes when you open the door. A smooth transition from the beeping sound into the first verse occurs where the piano takes over the note, and it opens another heartbreak song. The piano remains throughout the verse and is accompanied by subtle claps leading up to the chorus. Here, the piano changes the notes its playing and as it’s beautifully sang with emotion by Olivia, I feel as if the chorus is going to take us somewhere different, but it goes to verse two, which is just the same as the first verse. Except this time, the claps play from the start and they’re louder which helps build the suspense. The car noise subtly makes an appearance, and we proceed to the chorus, where this time it feels as though it’s sang with even more emotion, which I believe is evident on the line “but I’ve never felt this way for no one, oh”. There is just another level of passion on the build up to the bridge. With lyrics such as “Red lights, stop signs” opening this segment, I can only admire how meticulously this song has been created. It returns to being a slow ballad, like the first verse, and we slowly outro the song. My favourite lyric of this song is “But today I drove through the suburbs, crying ’cause you weren’t around”.
4. 1 step forward, 3 steps back
Here we are presented with one of the most underrated tracks on the album that gets overlooked because of all the other hits. Had this been released as a single, I believe it would have got just as much attention. It begins with the birds chirping and a soft and catchy piano riff and is joined by her soft vocals. In this track, Olivia explores how messed up she is over a boy and can’t seem to do wrong for doing right. Throughout the verse, the piano riff stays the same and a change occurs as the chorus commences. It’s only a subtle change in the progression. As the song continues, Olivia’s vocals are growing with emotion. It’s not until the end of the chorus where we see the song differ in the bridge. With the effect of the lyrics repeating “No, it’s back and forth, did I say something wrong? No, it’s back and forth, going over everything I said. It’s back and forth, did I do something wrong? It’s back and forth, baby, this is all your fault”. This is an affective part of the song because it’s the change in music that I have anticipated throughout this song. Returning to the softly sang and gentle played theme of the song, it draws to a close. My favourite line in this song is, “And maybe in some masochistic way, I kind of find it all exciting. Like, which lover will I get today? Will you walk me to the door or send me home crying?”.
5. Déjà vu
A twinkling introduction starts this song, casually lifting the tone from track number four. We instantly see the writer is reflecting on fond memories of a relationship, but then unexpectedly changes to her ex-partners new girlfriend, and suddenly it becomes a bitter song. Not so much at the new girlfriend, but within her persistence of mentioning memories she and her former partner created together and how she feels those memories are being recycled with another girl. The song has an added element of drums after the chorus, with a siren sounding guitar riff. The drums remain in the second verse as Rodrigo continues to explore all her memories with her former partner. The outro of this song is just the writer reciting all the memories again. This song was the second single which followed Driver’s Licence, and it showed that Olivia Rodrigo was the real deal! My favourite line from this track is “Do you call her, almost say my name, cause let’s be honest, we kinda do sound the same”.
6. Good 4 U
If you asked a non-Olivia Rodrigo listener to name a song of hers, this is the one they’ll more than likely say. Very reminiscent of ‘Misery Business’ by Paramore, so much so half of the royalties of this song go to Hayley Williams. I personally can hear the similarities between the two songs, with the chorus’ sounding alike, but I don’t associate ‘Good 4 U’ with the Paramore track. Regardless of the similarities, it has very much made its own name for itself. Starting with bass only, it leads to a calm first verse. Once the guitar starts playing, it builds the tension by a crescendo. Playing a drum roll, you know the song is going to kick off, and so it does. With the iconic “Good for you line”, we can really hear the rawness and emotion in Rodrigos voice. An upbeat chorus in terms of instruments, is accompanied by some impassioned lyrics such as, “I’ve lost my mind, I’ve spent the night crying on the floor of my bathroom”. The instrumental of the song after the second chorus leads onto a bridge, that vocally starts off quiet and gradually builds up. As this is happening, the drums change and the guitar is then reinstated to lead to the line where Rodrigo belts out “or maybe you never cared at all”, which is then followed by a chorus with soft reverb and a stripped back guitar. Unexpectedly, Rodrigo shouts “Like a damn sociopath”, which then commences onto the final chorus. My favourite line in this track is, “I guess that therapist I found for you, she really helped, now you can be a better man for your brand-new girl”.
7. Enough For You
Another incredible track that goes under the radar is ‘Enough for You’. An acoustic guitar sets us away with a peaceful picking pattern, with a song that touches on how the lyricist did everything she could to her former partner and despite her best efforts, it still wasn’t good enough. A case where this is evident is “Tried so hard to be everything that you liked, just for you to say you’re not the compliment type”. Eventually, after reflection, it goes on to show that Olivia has started to come to terms with the breakup. There are no changes with the acoustic guitar in this song; the only difference in this song is when we reach the bridge which only changes vocally. An aspect I like of the vocals is the run in the riff of the way she sings “nothing”. “And they’ll think that I am so exciting, and you’ll be the one who’s crying”, is my favourite line of this song because I love the way it flips how she feels and the gradual realisation of she will find somebody else in the future and will eventually be over this person.
8. Happier
Now, this is my favourite track of the album, and it doesn’t get the attention it deserves at all! If you dive into her music and beyond her biggest hits, you find uncovered songs like this one. A dramatic introduction starts this song off, with synth notes lifting to release a soft and quiet verse. It’s a reflection of the writers last month of the breakup, and how she knows her ex-partner has moved on, because they share the same friends. The keys play a soft arpeggio throughout the entire song, creating a ballad. As we reach the chorus, the bass guitar gently plays, and Rodrigo creates another memorable chorus, ending on the line “I hope you’re happy, but don’t be happier”. After this section, the keys stop for just a moment, as the bass plays a riff to take us into verse two. This verse explores how she perceives her ex-partner is getting on with his new girlfriend. Here in this verse, is my favourite line of the song, “And now I’m picking her apart, like cutting her down will make you miss my wretched heart”. I love this line because it shows how raw the breakup is to her, but he seems to be doing fine. So, trying to pick his new partner apart by comparing her to herself is probably only making matters worse. An instrumental occurs, continuing with the ballad like sound, with the addition of Olivia singing “Ooo” so softly. In my opinion, this is an emotional song, the ballad like sound, the rawness and passion in the song makes it my favourite song.
9. Jealousy, jealousy
A bass led introduction continues into the verse, as Rodrigo explores jealousy and how social media influences this, as this is a platform where she compares herself to others. It changes from being a song with bass and vocals, with the addition of the drums and synth in the chorus. Continuing to explore her insecurities in the chorus, a clever line by the lyricist is “My jealousy, jealousy started following me”, where that could be a reference to how you follow people online and the jealousy has started to suffocate her. From this line, it goes back to just the vocals and bass, but then a similar instrumental to the chorus, returns to verse two. The bridge is the best feature of this song, it adds a nice element, where she almost chants the lyrics about how the people online make her jealous. My favourite line from this song is “I’m so sick of myself, I’d rather be, rather be, anyone, anyone else”.
10.Favourite Crime
Picking away with an acoustic guitar, Olivia Rodrigo explores how she may be at fault in the breakup because she let herself get too attached. Referencing the song title, this can be seen in the line “I was your willing accomplice, honey”, which I believe is subtly a clever line. An aspect of this song that I admire considerably is the vocals, consisting of the lead and harmonies. Especially in the bridge, on the line “Oh look what we became”. It then leads onto the final chorus, where she intensely hints onto still having feelings for her partner at the time, even though she was aware of how he treats her. My favourite line in this song is “And now every time a siren sounds, I wonder if you’re around” implying that she is reminded of what he did to her a lot of the time.
11.Hope ur ok
This song very much has the feel of a last track on an album, with its different sound to the rest of the others. It is a chilled-out song, and the story touches on her friends who she knew when she was younger, making this a rare song that isn’t about her ex-boyfriend. However, like the other songs in this track, it’s a sad one, but for different reasons. Exploring the tough life one of her friends faced growing up, is a boy who “wore long sleeves ’cause of his dad”, which could suggest he was physically abused. Verse two explores a friend who had to raise her own brothers and didn’t have the bond between her parents that a lot of people expect to have. This song is a message to those friends, where she hopes life has got better for them. My favourite lyric in this song is “Addressing the letters to the holes in my butterfly wings”, which is a powerful line saying that she hopes her old friends have had a new lease of life.
To conclude this album, it’s a late teen album reflecting on a breakup of a relationship. The way she goes into detail and tells the story is incredible for how old she was when she wrote the album. There are so many catchy songs in this album and it is definitely worth listening to it throughout. Like I stated in the introduction, this album is a guilty pleasure of mine and is unlike the other albums and songs that I have covered on the blog. However, as it is one of my favourite current albums, I feel it is only right to share this and to show that everybody’s music taste can vary.
