Pop artist Tate McRae released her sophomore album “THINK LATER” on Friday, Dec. 8. While the album’s lead single “greedy” was released in mid-September, McRae only announced the album in November, a month before it was officially released. The album spans a total of 14 tracks, two of which are the previously-released singles “greedy” and “exes,” with both tracks artistically uncovering the nuances of teenage love and heartbreak.
The album begins with the upbeat, angsty track “cut my hair,” immediately setting up the album’s themes of heartbreak and recovery with its lyricism about moving on and developing a sense of self-love after breakups. The ending of the track transitions perfectly into “greedy,” which also introduces a sense of familiarity as listeners have likely heard the song before, be it on McRae’s discography or on the radio. McRae includes seamless transitions between a majority of the tracks for the remainder of the album, telling a story and giving listeners a smooth experience as they progress through the album in its intended order.
By far, the most notable aspect of the album is its production. The bass in “think later” establishes a rebellious tone, perfectly conveying the track’s themes of living life on the edge. In contrast, the angelic synths in “messier” allow the track to become more emotional by emphasizing McRae’s emotional vocals and lyricism. As a whole, the producers have done a flawless job of matching the instrumentals and synths to the lyricism to establish a unique tone in every track of the album, giving the overall album a lot of personality. The production also makes each track catchy, characterizing the album as highly singable and perfect for karaoke.
McRae’s vocals also shine throughout the album. Unlike her past tracks on her discography, she demonstrates vocal maturity in “THINK LATER,” singing with a new sense of power, particularly in songs like “grave” and “we’re not alike.” In addition to this, the lyricism in the slower tracks is stellar, such as the verses in “messier” and “want that too.” This contrasts with the album’s more upbeat tracks, which prioritize production over lyrical depth, allowing the album to depict the confusing and bittersweet nature of losing someone you love.
However, it is highly disappointing that the album’s lyricism and overall themes fail to differentiate themselves from other tracks in McRae’s discography — while songs like “we’re not alike” and “messier” showcase the singer’s growth, she easily could have released “hurt my feelings” and “think later” in her previous album, simply due to these tracks’ repetitive thematic characteristics from her past work. Furthermore, the album’s themes are very prominent in modern music. Although “THINK LATER” is filled with catchy tracks, a majority of the album ultimately falls into the endless void of love songs that are currently being released in the pop genre.
Fans of McRae will likely fall in love with the album in their first few listens, with every track highlighting the singer’s flawless vocals and the production being almost addictive. However, listeners will be disappointed if they expect an album that is a significant departure from McRae’s past discography or the current state of pop music. Yet this is only noticeable through thorough analysis of the album past its initial listens and searching for a deeper meaning — the average listener will not stumble with these barriers of repetitiveness, instead appreciating the catchiness and reliability of the 14 tracks.
4/5
