eternal sunshine / Ariana Grande / March 8, 2023
- Joshua Yoo
- Mar 10, 2024
- 1 min read
Amidst all of the feverish drama surrounding the endings and beginnings of her relationships, ‘eternal sunshine’ rarely concerns itself with setting the story straight. Ariana Grande spins an cloudy narrative of blissful love, heart-wrenching emotions, and defiant anthems, all under a bed of veteran-crafted pop that’s consistently sweet on the ears.
Bringing in reliable pop powerhouses like Max Martin on the production side, the album doesn’t seem as much concerned with forward-thinking ideation as it does with wide-appealing hit songs. Given the baseline vocal ability and songwriting sensibilities Ariana Grande possesses, it means the album has its fair share of hits, like the intoxicating, ethereal confessions of love on “supernatural”, or “don’t wanna break up again” with the tender shuffle of its beat and the endearing optimism of its lyrics. Even the more stripped-back “i wish i hated you” puts Ariana’s voice on a glimmering pedestal.
It’s impressive that there really aren’t any misses on the album at all. Instead are moments that seem run-of-the-mill for both the genre and Ariana herself, like some of the clunkier throwback R&B cuts or boiler plate dance pop grooves on “yes, and?”.
It doesn’t detract from the fact that she’s still one of the most consistent pop stars of this generation. Ariana Grande has chart-topping power, and sometimes that’s all a fun album is concerned with.
Highlight(s): supernatural, don’t wanna break up again, i wish i hated you, imperfect for you, bye
Lowlight(s): true story, eternal sunshine, the boy is mine
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