Hey all!
I thought I would do an album review for an artist that rose to fame in 2018 with a single called 'Sweet But Psycho'. It became a pary song in my student flat and also helped her get recognition. The album 'Heaven and Hell' was created through the months of December 2018 until earlier this year; including collaborations with other artists including Cirkut and Charlie Puth.
Disc 1:
1 - 'H.E.A.V.E.N'
The first song on the album is titled with full stops in between each letter, as there is a pause whilst Ava sings out the letters to spell out the word. The simple message behind this initial track is that whoever she is singing about prefers heaven to hell; stating 'heaven is what you like'. It's a song that's just under two minutes and includes a lot of background instruments with little to no vocals!
2 - 'Kings & Queens'
I believe the message behind the song is that she's speaking about the situation of 'men and women' always needing to be there to help eachother out, but sometimes women can fight their own battles, and they will find love eventually - 'to all of the queens who are fighting alone, baby you're not dancing on your own'. The song features some really cool guitar solos before the song softly comes to a close with a melodic bridge before the final chorus! There are lots of 'Oh oh's' at the end of the song, but they're pretty cool!
3 - 'Naked'
I don't think Ava was wearing any clothes when she was writing this song...or maybe this is a song aimed at somebody that she likes? She speaks about 'when she plays cards, she keeps them close to her chest', especially since she's entered 'the game' a.k.a the music industry! The song speaks about her secret lover who is more than welcome to take off all her clothes, but if they wont know/see her heart, they won't be able to break it! It's quite a romantic(ish) song where she is able to reveal her emotional side, as well as revealing her true self...hoping that people can see her for what's underneath rather than judging her by the scars on her body! Who's song is better? James Arthur's 'Naked' or Ava's? Or maybe somebody could merge the two together...OR they could just collaborate together??? Sorry, I'm just getting a little excited, but this was a really well written and sung song; especially with Ava's background vocals along with the main vocals!
4 - 'Tattoo'
This seemed like a half rock and half pop song at the same time, if that's even possible? In this song she describes herself as a tattoo and that once she's on, it's difficult to get her off! 'Can't keep it hidden, I'm stuck in your head' - that's her way of teasing the boy she's singing about, although she goes on to say that just because she's always on him, it doesn't mean she belongs to him. She's a feisty woman and she's not been around for that long, but I would definitely love to see her live or even interview her about where her inspirations come from for when she writes her music! Again, a similar song title to one of James Arthur's 'New Tattoo'; is there a pattern here?!? Or just pure coincidence...
5 - 'OMG What's Happening'
I feel like everyone's thinking like this at the moment...unsure what's happening, whether we talk about brexit, the coronavirus or a more emotional feeling. In this song we see her innocent side, blaming somebody for somebody being 'everything she needs' and making reference running to someone's heart'. Another simple pop song about love, but hopefully the lucky boy she's singing about gets the message? She also uses the word 'magnet' to describe the lucky boy and she's THAT attracted. Just before the final chorus she says 'I'm not sure if I want to kiss your face or punch it' - so it's clearly somebody she isn't sure about whether she should continue loving, whether that's based on people's opinions or if their relationship has had some bumps, but it would a good touch to the song!
6 - 'Call Me Tonight'
Before listening to this song I thought of Carly Rae Jepsen for some random reason, but anyways back to the song! After the first sentences, I feel like I'm in a slow R&B room of a nightclub, because the song is so slow and sophisticated. Some of the lyrics include 'If you don't know my name, you can call me tonight' - an easy way to try and get somebody's number...Might try this as a chat up line! That's one of the great reasons I like listening to as many different types of artists as possible; because sometimes the lyrics are relatable, they say things that you just wouldn't have thought of before, and actually, 99% of the songs are completely different to what you would expect from that artist!
7 - 'Born to the Night'
The second to last song on the first disc is probably the most 'dancey' out of all of the tracks so far...if that's even a word? The verse is pretty smooth and fast paced, but then the pre chorus and chorus experiments a little more with varying the tone and pitch of the lyrics. I believe this song is speaking about how Ava becomes more alive when it's night time; describing different members of her family as those in the atmosphere...and could signify that she might be a little more chilled throughout during the day, but night time is party time!
8 - 'Torn'
Before I listened to this song, I did recognise the title of the song, and I HAVE heard this song again but not sure where as it was released back in 2019. Anyways, back to the lyrics...It could have the obvious meaning on the fact that she's torn between whether to be with somebody or not, describing the good and bad things that she's going through! 'I wanna stay, wanna walk out of the door - among other options that she mentions throughout the song, which I am sure a lot of people have had discussions about, whether with themselves or their lovers.
Disc 2:
1 - 'Take You To Hell'
Uh oh, even before listening to this song, I'm sure this song is going to describe how she's going to take the bad people to hell. *gulps*. Please don't take me Ava, I'm a good boy...I promise! 'If you're gonna treat me right, I'll take you to heaven every night, but God forbid you leave me, I'll take you to hell' is what she sings in the first half of the chorus, weighing up the options of a good boyfriend vs a bad boyfriend, and what she's going to do. I feel like some of her songs have balanced arguments of good vs bad or a variety of choices, and that's a relatable aspect in most people's life, as everyday; famous or not, people have options of things to do or not do. It's also a particularly spooky song which I could image being in a horror movie for example (if it was slowed down, and if the music video was scary...it could haunt people!)
2 - 'Who's Laughing Now'
No, this isn't the Jessie J song (although I wish she does release some new music soon!). Sorry, I keep getting distracted from Ava, but I do love her. The meaning behind the song is probably at her laughing at somebody who's messed her feelings around, with backing vocals in the chorus 'Don't you' before she sings each of the lines which include 'know that I'm stronger', 'cry like a baby' (with a number of Ha ha ha ha ha's) at the end of every line, laughing like a baby, at whoever she is describing like a baby! Ha!
3 - 'Belladonna'
I saw the word 'donna' and now I fancy a donner kebab, but I've been eating healthy recently so luckily I cannot be tempted. Anyways, back to the song, when will I learn?!? I had to search the meaning of this song and 'belladonna' which is a drug prepared from the leaves and root of a deadly nightshade, containing atropine. So, I'm not sure if this song is speaking about her personal experiences with drugs, or whether she's tempting somebody to join her on this weird and wonderful journey she's on. Some of the lyrics include 'Don't come here unless you wanna...' which pauses halfway on the sentence, but yeah, I'm not against drugs, just do them safely if you want to do them, and be careful to not overdose by accident! And on that note *snort*.
4 - 'Rumors'
We've all had a rumour shared about us haven't we? I know I sure have...The lyrics in the chorus state that she's heard the 'rumour rumour rumours' (OH yes, I spelt the word in English, because we know the Americans don't add a 'U'); but yeah she speaks of the rumours, and she still ends up running into the subject's room. Rumours are sometimes false allegations made about people, so it's down to individuals to decide what stance they feel about the situation, so she's balanced the options but still wants to continue some form of relationship with this person through closed doors, no matter what the rumour happens to be...I like the pitch change in the chorus, and the electronic musical instruments in the background. I think it's in the top 3/4 on the album!
5 - 'So Am I'
This is a classic song which I have heard SO many times, but that doesn't mean I don't love it? Quite simply, she states in this song that she often hears people saying things about her or treating her in a different way; especially in the lyrics 'often hear the quiet whispers', meaning that people could be talking about her. 'Do you ever feel like an outcast? You don't have to fit intoo the format' are other lines she states in the song, and emphasises on the fact that normal is boring, and actually having a unique personality, style, vibe etc can help you to stand out from the crowd! it's a very powerful song, and definitely rose her to a higher level of fame, so other people must have agreed with her verdict on this issue! (Also, she's got one side of hair that is longer than she other side, as she did it by accident but realised it would help her stand out); and in fact, I don't think people have critiqued her, but it doesn't matter, because she gets to make music for a job, full time, and she can laugh at those people who ever judged her in the past...!
6 - 'Salt'
The lyrics of the chorus include the words 'I'm all out of salt, I'm not gonna cry' followed by 'because I look way too good tonight', so is she describing herself whilst she's feeling at her best, saying that she's not going to sprinkle her love or feelings everywhere, but she'll keep them in one place? I don't know, but that's how I'm going to analyse the song! Out of all 15 songs on the album, this is the only one I can't seem to put a definitive meaning on, but it was definitely a good song!
7 - 'Sweet But Psycho'
To finish off the album review, here's another one of the classic songs by Ava, one that I've sung to, danced to, twerked to and even fallen asleep too...but I'm not sure how that last one even happened! This song could either be a self reflection on herself, potentially how she used to be before she realised who she was, or speaking about one of her ex lovers' new partners; saying that she's sweet, but she's also a little crazy! It's definitely an interesting way to describe somebody, but listening more to the song, it could be her 'alternative persona', maybe once she's had alcohol? Or going through a mood swing? it's a little vague, but I do really love the song!
What a lovely way to finish the album review, with one of the classic singles! I'm sure there are going to many more yet to come from Ava Max, as she's still young, she's still growing and I'd love to see her collaborate with more other up and coming artists! Anyways, that's all for this review but I will be back soon with other music video reviews, album reviews or just a summary of some 'best songs of the week' reviews!
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