3.5/5 Stars
Waves to Watch: Castle, New Americana
Genre: Dreamy pop
Goes great with: Lorde, The xx, Marina and the Diamonds
Halsey has a soothing voice, possessed by an uneven vibrato, most times haunting, like on the Lana-like "Drive". However, Badlands is less of a fatalist anthem than any of Del Rey's past releases (Ultraviolence, Born To Die..."), even when she's likening her and her lover to immortals running through the streets ("Young God").
Songs like "Hold Me Down" - laden with raging drums and noisy pops - and standout "Castle" cut the reins on her sweeping sweetness. On the latter, Halsey rambunctiously declares "Sick of all these people talking / Sick of all this noise" over industrial tripping chimes, which can be seen as either a middle finger to the suits who run her major label or a standalone feminist anthem.
Frangipane is already outspoken, not requiring any time to wade into her commentary. The album's finale, a retake on one of her EP's (Room 93) tracks, "Ghost", is mirrored by a video painting a glowing affair between two girls. It's not a trendy, oversexualized lesbian shot of scenes, but an opportunity for deeper interpretation, the singer has stated. In "Ghost"'s verses, Halsey is rambling, her syncopated singing on the verge of rapping. "Coming Down" is another nod to Room 93, this time with a desolate, religious cadence reflective of her first single and deluxe edition feature, "Hurricane".
Halsey has put such a strong compilation of lyrics about lost loves and martyrdom that it is nearly impossible to fathom that she is only a few years removed from her teenage dream years. She's edgy and challenging of the purity pushed onto young girls in "Haunting" ('Cause I came here so that you'd come for me). She's sexy without being a hypersexual doll, spinning on stage with glittering lights washing her out.
Fans of Halsey have embraced the young candy-colored singer with a certain kind of familiarity and sisterhood. They have made their own art forms out of what is perhaps the most sorrowful but elegant line on the album: "You were red / You liked me because I was blue / You touched me and I suddenly was a lilac sky / And you decided that purple just wasn't for you".
Badlands is colorful, yes, but it is also black and white. "Roman Holiday" flows almost as if Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn had fallen in love to a soundtrack splashed with poppier, sunnier synths. "Control" is a steampunk, grittier gray, while being a firm example of her adoption of poetic iambic pentameter and impeccable phrasing. A grandfather clock chimes behind her suppleness as she laments "I couldn't stand the person inside me / I turned all the mirrors around".
"New Americana" is gold, a glittering Roaring Twenties ambiance saturated with 2015 references ("High on legal marijuana / Raised on Biggie and Nirvana"). The song is for 20-somethings with no seeming places to go, but Halsey has some - if not every - place to go.
On Badlands, there's room for something bigger. Within a few months, Halsey has the capacity to be the new queen, the new challenger of old ideas. Halsey is about to explode, coloring the landscape as a lilac sky.
Badlands is available now on Capitol Records. A 16-song deluxe version is also available.
//Angelia//
