The Best of New Music Friday:
Dua Lipa – Radical Optimism
Dua Lipa has now shared her highly anticipated third album Radical Optimism. It’s a record with 11 tracks rooted in thoughts of a brighter future. Dua Lipa said she wrote the record while she was single. Then she collaborated with the likes of Caroline Ailin, Danny L. Harle, Tobias Jesso Jr., and Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker.
Dua says the lyrics on Radical Optimism are filled with “looseness and honesty” in a way her two previous albums Dua Lipa and the highly acclaimed Future Nostalgia weren’t.
“These Walls” discusses an older relationship, saying that if “these four walls could talk, they’d say you know you’re fucked,” with an honest and slightly aggressive tone that is seen over and over again on this record that feels like an attempt at the modern “all killer and no filler” tracklisting formula.
In making the album, Dua experimented with new sounds and musical arrangements. “It’s alternative but pop, with a touch of psychedelia,” she said.
Fans might be surprised to know Dua touches more into psychedelia than she leads on. Radical Optimism sounds like a largely psychedelic pop record from start to finish.
Radical Optimism‘s closing track “Happy For You” finds Dua talking about an ex again. This time she’s wishing them good luck with a new partner. “That’s definitely a new emotion,” says Dua. “I used to be much more impulsive and reactive. Not every breakup has to be a bad one.”
And not every record has to be a high-strung one, as Dua and company show here. On a slight departure from her previous sounds, listeners can tell everyone involved with Radical Optimism had a fun time making it. Listen to the funneled-in crowd noises and recording session chatter on this record. They display a sweeping cheerfulness all their own.
New Music Friday Top Picks:
Camera Obscura – Look to the East, Look to the West
Kamasi Washington – Fearless Movement
Mdou Moctar – Funeral for Justice
Sia – Reasonable Woman
Which of these tracks from New Music Friday will you add to your favorite playlists today? Any we missed? Let us know in the comments or on Instagram!
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