Halsey
Badlands
Indie starlet Halsey’s debut album Badlands is an alternative take on what many people consider to be a traditional album. Her unique brand of dark, heart-wrenching tunes contain unusual beats that lean towards the melancholic, yet are irresistibly catchy.
Halsey perfectly harmonizes a blend of alt-pop and R&B that leaves listeners feeling refreshed. Her lyrical approach is direct, and Halsey explicitly states her feelings without hiding them behind metaphors and allusions. This style of lyricism reveals Halsey’s bleak take on a black-and-white world. The opening track “Castle,” which has a dark R&B beat, slowly begins her review of her own struggles with mental health, and past bouts of failure.
Despite only having one EP to her name, Halsey maintains a steady growth of loyal fans, and her edgy take on today’s music is truly refreshing. Keep Halsey on your radar for now, as she could easily shock the music world in the coming years.
Hilary Duff
Breathe In. Breathe Out.
Growing up, I was a huge Hilary Duff fan. I just had to have every release and piece of merchandise of hers. Following 2007’s Dignity, there has been a huge void in her releases. I waited … and waited … and waited. After eight years, the day finally came. In June, Hilary Duff released the much-anticipated Breathe In. Breathe Out. From the first listen, it was apparent that it was definitely worth the wait.
The tracks are a good combination of dance-pop and folk-pop oriented songs. However, the songwriting was my favourite aspect of Breathe In. Breathe Out., as it is far more mature than previous releases, yet is still fun.
I particularly enjoyed the Ed Sheeran co-written song “Tattoo,” featuring the lyrics: “You’re under my skin / Running in my bloodstream / These scars are the way that you loved me / I guess that you had to leave a tattoo.” It feels like a Sheeran song, yet Duff captivates enough emotion in her vocals to make it her own.
Duff brings a suprising element of excitement with the sexual undertones and whistling in lead single “Sparks.” In comparison to her first album, the first thing to come to mind is, “Wow, Lizzie McGuire grew up.”
