Following nearly a four-year-hiatus, pop superstar Ariana Grande returns with her stupendous, seventh studio album, eternal sunshine.
2023 was an interesting year for Grammy-winning pop superstar Ariana Grande. She earned plenty of attention regarding her divorce from Dalton Gomez, as well as her new relationship with actor Ethan Slater. The press wasnât pretty regarding her relationship with Slater, and even as her 2024, seventh LP, eternal sunshine, has been critically acclaimed, sheâs received hateful messages too. Focusing on the music exclusively, eternal sunshine is a stupendous album by Grande that easily bests her previous outing, positions (2020). There is NOT a bad song to be found.
âByeâ
âIntro (end of the world)â commences the excellence, backed by a radiant, dreamy, and amorous instrumental. Grande produced the intro alongside Shintaro Yasuda, Nick Lee, and Aaron Paris. The lyrics reflect on her relationship, with Grande questioning, is this the right person, and wondering if heâs feeling and thinking the same way. As always, vocally, she sounds marvelous and refined.
âUsually, Iâd join you on the floor, but this dance ainât for me.â Word, Ari! âBye,â the first full-length song from eternal sunshine, follows in all its glory. Here, we get sweet vocals by Grande â the expectation from the prodigiously gifted artist. The production gives off soulful pop vibes, produced by Grande, Max Martin, and ILYA. The melodies are tuneful throughout all sections. Harmonized vocals appearing during the pre-chorus mark one of the more alluring moments. The chorus is simple but memorable â it gets the job done (âBye-bye / Boy, bye / Bye-bye / Itâs over, itâs over, oh yeahâ). Fittingly, there is fabulous contrast in the bridge, where Grande asserts, âNow itâs certainly bittersweet / This hook feels too hard to sing / But itâs better than repeat.â Facts.
âDonât wanna break up againâ benefits from an infectious groove. The accompaniment possesses a cool energy â potent despite being chill to the nth degree. Always, cool, calm, and collected, Grande continues to be the master of smoothness. Even when she swears in the chorus, she does so with class:
âI donât wanna fuck with your head
Itâs breakinâ my heart
To keep breakinâ yours again (Yours again, yours again, yours again)
This situationship has to end
But I just canât refuse
I donât wanna break up againâŠâ
âeternal sunshineâ
âSaturn Returns Interlude,â another reflective moment from eternal sunshine, fits the vibe of the LP. It prefaces the winning title track, âeternal sunshine,â superbly. âI donât care what people say / We both know I couldnât change you,â Grande sings, continuing, âI guess you could say the same / Canât rearrange truth.â Word. The sound of âeternal sunshineâ is enticing with its urban music cues â those 808s, baby! The rhythmic melody is also indelible. Never forcing things, Ariana continues to make vocal magic. Furthermore, besides her terrific lead, harmonized vocals in select moments in the verse and pre-chorus provide a lift. Speaking of the pre-chorus, lyrically, thereâs an intriguing lyric: âSo now we play our separate scenes / Now, now sheâs in my bed⊠layinâ on your chest.â Hmm
. The chorus is EVERYTHING â the centerpiece and crĂšme de la crĂšme. Part of the reason the chorus stands out is how it relates to her divorce and âhomewreckingâ new relationship:
âNow itâs like Iâm lookinâ in the mirror
Hope you feel alright when youâre in her
I found a good boy and heâs on my side
Youâre just my eternal sunshine, sunshine.â
Ultimately, the title track marks another awesome moment from eternal sunshine.
âNeed your hands all up on my body / Like the moon needs the stars (Like the moon needs the stars) / Nothinâ else felt this way inside me / Boy, letâs go too far.â Oh, snap! âsupernatural,â produced by Grande, Max Martin, and OZGO, keeps eternal sunshine on the up and up. The groove compels while the smoothness of the backdrop shines â those synths, pads, and that anchoring bass line. The sound is a wonderful blend of pop and R&B, a sound that Grande has owned throughout her career. Vocally, remaining buttery smooth, Grande never breaks a sweat, even when she ascends. The section of the song to beat is the chorus: âItâs like supernatural / This loveâs possessinâ me, but I donât mind at all / Itâs like supernatural / Itâs takinâ over me, donât wanna fight the fall.â Notably, the slightly deluxe adds a remix, as the 14th track, featuring Troye Sivan.
âtrue storyâ
âThis is a true story about all the lies / You fantasized âbout you and IâŠâ âtrue storyâ commences with the chorus, which sets the tone. Set in a minor key, âtrue storyâ embraces a contemporary R&B sound. The bass line stand outs. Once more, the record marks another memorable moment, specifically with Ari embracing villainous, âbad girlâ ways. While Grande retains the refined nature vocally, she also lets loose more towards the end â âGimme love, love!â Notably, the slightly deluxe adds the a cappella version as the 16th track.
âHow can it be? You and me / Might be meant to be, canât unsee it / But I donât wanna cause no scene.â Grande is fierce AF on the 90s-inspired âthe boy is mineâ, a companion piece to âtrue storyâ which precedes. Here, Grande accepts the controversy she receives being in a relationship with this particular man. In the first verse, she adds, âIâm usually so unproblematic,â but of course, the power of the boy has driven her to the dark side (âAnd God knows Iâm tryinâ, but thereâs just no use in denyingâ). Despite being devilish, she sounds angelic from a vocal perspective. In the second verse, she makes it clear the way this relationship has gone down wasnât as intended. Still, sheâs confident that âMy girls, they always come through in a sticky situation / Say, âitâs fine.ââ In the bridge, she takes accountability for the mess, but also states, âI canât ignore my heart, boy.â In the chorus, Grande embraces her lustful side: âThe boy is mine / I canât wait to try him / Le-letâs get intertwined / The stars, they aligned.â Messy love or nah, Grande brings the heat on this one.
âyes, and?â
âNow, Iâm so done with caring / What you think, no, I wonât hide.â On âyes and?â, the promo single from eternal sunshine, Grande embraces a dance-pop vibe. Interestingly, there is homage paid to pop icons and references to her relationship (âYour business is yours and mine is mine / Why do you care so much whose d**k I ride?â). The sound of the record deserves a shout out. It begins with ample production gimmickry from the onset, followed by an infectious, danceable groove. Beyond that beat, there are plenty of ear-catching instrumental moments that complement the always brilliant vocals of Grande. Even before she establishes the narrative of the record in the verses, the introduction is prolonged, lasting nearly 50 seconds in duration. As always, Grande eats from a vocal perspective, singing with ease. âBoy, come on, put your lipstick on / ⊠Come on and walk this way through the fire,â she sings in the pre-chorus, embracing and promoting inclusivity. In the chorus, she drops a few swears for the sake of uplifting! ââYes, and?â / Say that shit with your chest, and / Be your own fuckinâ best friendâŠâ Woo! She brings the heat on the empowering, entertaining, and exuberant âyes, and?â. The slightly deluxe adds the remix with the icon that Grande is often compared to, Mariah Carey, as the 17th and final track.
âI donât wanna tiptoe, but I donât wanna hide / But I donât wanna feed this monstrous fire,â Grande sings in the first verse of âwe canât be friends (wait for your love),â another juggernaut from eternal sunshine. She continues singing in the first verse of the second single from the LP, âJust wanna let this story die / And Iâll be alright.â I love the subtlety of the thudding beat (four on the floor), which is part of the tasteful nature of the production. In the chorus, the thuds and the intensity of the backdrop becomes more dynamic, fitting given the rise to the occasion. âWe canât be friendsâ is comprised of colorful synths and a driving bass line â always a winning formula for the accompaniment! Another part of the winning formula are the violins, which appear at the end. With her elite vocals being her calling card, once more, Grande delivers an honest and memorable chorus:
âWe canât be friends
But Iâd like to just pretend
You cling to your papers and pens
Wait until you like me again.â
Lyrically, âwe canât be friends (wait for your love)â marks one of the cleverest songs of eternal sunshine, making you question if sheâs referencing her ex-husband, the media, or both simultaneously.
âI wish I hated youâ
Three more, well-written and well-performed songs conclude eternal sunshine. First comes âI wish I hated you,â a brief number where Grande reflects on her divorce. âHung all my clothes in the closet you made / Your shoes still in boxes, I send them your way / Hoping life brings you no new pain,â she sings in the first verse. She knows it would be easier to move on if she hated her ex, but alas she doesnât (âAnd no matter how guilty I still feel saying it / I wish I hated youâ). She follows up with the penultimate cut, âimperfect for youâ which catches the ear with its guitar accompaniment, anchoring bass line, cool harmonic progression (most prominent in the chorus), and meter (compound-duple time, baby). Once more, Ari gives a memorable chorus, with some cussing too!
âFucked up, anxious, too much
But Iâll love you like you need me to
Imperfect for you
Messy, completely distressed
But Iâm not like that since I met you
Imperfect for you.â
âI wish I hated youâ is a mesmerizing listen, as is the final cut, âordinary things.â âOrdinary thingsâ checks off many of the same boxes as much of eternal sunshine â smooth, lush, rhythmic production, rhythmic, tuneful melodies, and world-class, pop vocals. The featured guest, Nonna, is Grandeâs grandmother, Marjorie Grande, who offers her granddaughter sound advice:
âAnd as I told her, never go to bed without kissinâ goodnight
Thatâs the worst thing to do, donât ever, ever do that
And if you canât, and if you donât feel comfortable doing it
Youâre in the wrong place, get out.â
Despite the backlash Ariana Grande has received regarding her divorce and new relationship, the musical offering the results, eternal sunshine, is excellent. She doesnât miss a beat, a note, or anything on this long-awaiting LP. When it comes to her musicianship, Ariana Grande ranks among the best â she excels at this pop thing.
Gems : âbye,â âeternal sunshine,â âthe boy is mine,â âyes, and?,â âwe canât be friends (wait for your love)â & âordinary thingsâ
Ariana Grande // eternal sunshine // Republic // 3.8.24
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: Brent Faulkner/ The Musical Hype; Republic; Clker-Free-Vector-Images, KrĂłlestwo Nauki, OpenClipart-Vectors, Pete Linforth, Tumisu from Pixabay]
1 Comment
Ariana Grande, the boy is mine | Midnight Heat
· March 21, 2024 at 12:01 am
[âŠ] on the 90s-inspired âthe boy is mineâ, the eighth track on her critically acclaimed, 2024 LP, eternal sunshine. In this song, written and produced by Grande alongside Max Martin, Shintaro Yasuda, and DaviDior [âŠ]
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