“The Secret of Us” is Gracie Abrams’ second full length album following her debut from last year, “Good Riddance.” This time around she’s continued collaborating with Aaron Dessener, who also worked on another of her projects, “This Is What It Feels Like.” Joining them is one of her longtime friends Audrey Hobert, who has writing credits all over the album and even helped make the music video for the lead single “Risk.” Initially released in June, Abrams announced that a deluxe edition would be coming Oct. 18 that includes four new songs as well as three live performances with Vevo.
Following the closing track of the original album is the song “Cool,” which debuted as an unreleased surprise song at a show by Abrams in Chicago. The gist of the song is the aftermath that follows getting with someone who is toxic. In the first verse she sings “I’m acting bored, it’s my right, after all the love you bombed.” Love bombing is a common manipulation tactic and if your partner is doing it, you’d better run. The chorus goes: “Now I’m so cool / I’ll be cool for the hell of it / You promised me that you’d call, but you never did / Fool, I’m a fool if the shoe fits / You probably met up with Cass and said the same shit.” Her saying she’ll be cool is returning the favor to the guy who played her. He never called her after they got together and being nonchalant is her way of showing that he doesn’t mean anything to her. The second verse fully acknowledges that this guy gets around but doesn’t care about any of these girls.
“That’s So True” was announced by Abrams to be on the deluxe edition while she was performing in Maine. It has quickly become a fan favorite because of the bridge, written by Gracie and Hobert. In her short film — which is where the live songs come from — Abrams talks about how writing with Hobert gave her the freedom and space to say whatever came to mind. This is a fun song that begs to be listened to in the car with the windows down. The lyrics feature a callback to “Cool” and center on a very relatable situation: seeing someone you used to be with do the things you used to do together with someone new. By the end of the song, she recognizes that he’s not anything special, he’s just some guy — which is so true.
As a long time Abrams fan, “I Told You Things” is reminiscent of her past work. It’s very simple and somber and has a similar sound to her song “Rockland,” off her second EP, “This Is What It Feels Like.” The song is about opening to someone and letting them know your deepest parts, only for the relationship to end and you regret sharing. The second verse of the song reminds me of the bridge of Taylor Swift’s “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived.” This track is something you listen to and as it keeps going your jaw just keeps dropping. Songwriting is how she gets those emotions out. Regret in the aftermath of relationships, romantic or platonic, is such a common occurrence because people put their trust in someone and suddenly, they’re not in your life anymore. Songs like this hit even harder because these feelings are so universal.
“Packing It Up” feels like a direct tie to the song “The blue” from her previous album. Abrams, similar to Olivia Rodrigo, doesn’t have very many happy and lovey songs, so this is a rarity. The song is about being ready to give up on love and accept that it’s not in the cards: but then it hits you right in the face. The lyrics in the chorus sum up the song nicely: “I swear that I wasn’t looking for much / But that’s just when you happened / That’s right when you happened.” Possibly my favorite part of the song are the lyrics: “I’ll hold you, I’ll know you / I’ll never leave out the back door / And I’d love to complete you / Hope you get all you could ask for.” Every line is so heartfelt and tender. This song serves as a reminder that love comes when you’re not looking for or expecting it.
The live songs on the album are “I Love You, I’m Sorry,” “I Knew It, I Know You,” and my personal favorite, “Free Now.” Overall, the deluxe tracks fit well into the rest of the album and seemingly follow a story of their own with all the lyrical parallels. The album’s sound is very mature compared to her previous projects and that growth isn’t going unnoticed. My only question is: will we ever get a happy Abrams album?
Rating: 5/5 stars