Welcome to Ear 2 Da Sky! Each week, I will be going over topics within music culture and reviewing albums and EPs across genres, eras and artists that are submitted by readers and listeners of my radio show every Monday at 11 p.m. on WHUS 91.7 FM! For this week’s submission, I listened to SOPHIE’S “OIL OF EVERY PEARL’S UN-INSIDES.”
The late SOPHIE has played a pivotal role in the landscape of music that we hear today. She’s worked with a myriad of artists, from some more niche names such as QT, GAIKA and Yelle, to larger-scale artists, such as Charli xcx, Vince Staples, Madonna, Kim Petras, Flume as well as a long, extensive list of others; but her artist credits are just as lengthy as her production credits.
“OIL OF EVERY PEARL’S UN-INSIDES” was released in the summer of 2018 and clocks in at 39 minutes, sitting at a short, but sweet, nine songs. After a multitude of singles over the course of four years, this was her debut studio album. The first single of the project would be released in the fall of 2017. The first track of the project, “It’s Okay to Cry,” was released with a music video, where she appears in the public eye for the first time in her career. This was a large step as she was previously described as reclusive and withdrawn.
This track opens with somber keys, quickly followed by SOPHIE giving affirmations to the listener, accepting them and encouraging them to be their “true self.” She repeats over and over throughout the song that “it’s okay to cry,” as although heavily stigmatized, it is truly okay to cry, to release all your pent-up emotions. Eventually the song ramps up into a synth-pop ballad, with Cecile Believe joining in on the affirmations.
Song two, “Ponyboy,” is a comical juxtaposition to track one. It’s a grimy sounding and risqué track, especially following the softness and dreaminess of “It’s Okay to Cry.” SOPHIE and Cecile Believe join together again, but rather than talking about an emotional release, they sing about another type of release. Track three off the album, “Faceshopping,” gives you a short break from the grimy synths, before slapping you right in the face with another hard-hitting beat. This song serves as a commentary on the surreal disingenuity of the internet and social media, as people strive to uphold this falsified idea of who they really are on the internet.
This album from 2018 could easily be something released today or even six years from now, which I believe is truly a testament to how impactful she was and still is to the development of music.
SOPHIE dives into topics of self-care, mental health, the concept of love, yearning and infatuation. Although these topics may have been discussed many times before, she brings a new flair to it, backing them with these newer synth-heavy auditory ideas — ideas that people are still dissecting today.
Each of these nine tracks work closely together to contrast one another. From the soft and sugary pop sounding instrumentals heard in “Whole New World/Pretend World” and “Immaterial” to the meticulously curated rigid-sounding, heavy, gut-punching compositions like “Ponyboy,” “Faceshopping” and “Not Okay.” She evokes each of these feelings in the listener through an extremely engaging auditory ride.
Rating: 4.5/5
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