On the 27th July, I attended and advanced listening of Billie Eilish’s new album Happier Than Ever. This was held at The Tuning Fork by UmusicNZ. Upon arriving to the venue our names were taken and then we had to give in our phones. This is obviously so no one leaks the new tracks before it is out this Friday. When I sat at one of the tables there were 2, what looked to be setlilsts but they had the tracklists written. I thought this was very creative. Also another side note, the venue this was held at was The Tuning Fork which is where Billie played her first NZ Show and Sold Out. We appreciate the details.
Please note this review is based off listening to it once, on speakers, in a venue of people. There weren’t many of us there, I’d say about 30 people. I was very much trying to listen and focus on it but it was also a bit hard as a host would jump in between songs for small talk. There was also a video from Billie herself for us just saying she hopes we enjoy it, she misses us and hopes to see us soon.
Now the review. This is my personal opinion, based off the notes I managed to take, so I apologise if it isn’t substantial enough but there’s not much longer to wait. I recommend when you do listen either use headphones or blast it very loud.
Happier Than Ever doesn’t build or seem to have a flow to it. I don’t personally see it as front to back album. It does still work to do that, but you could also put it on shuffle, and it wouldn’t sound out of place. Most of you may have seen that I called it an “experimental rollercoaster” and honestly that was the best way to put it. There is such a huge range of beat & sound experimentation, a lot of it actually catches you off-guard. I bet Finneas and Billie had a lot offun with this.
‘Getting Older’ is a slow track and upon listening it feels quite sad. It is Billie going through quite a bit of self-reflection. But also telling herself how she should navigate things. It makes you think about things in relation to your personal experience too. Her vocal range on this track really adds to the emotion and tone of that reflection. It was definitely one of the faves for people.
‘I Didn’t Change My Number’ is one I found to be very sassy Billie and it had a deep & gritty beat which was quite the contrast to ‘Getting Older’. But I was soon to find out that this album is VERY all over the place – a mind explosion and a lot to process in one sitting.
‘Billie Bossa Nova’ has a salsa-style flow to it but it is quite subtle. The beat is a bit more modern and deeper – “I’m not sentimental”.
‘My Future’ – I mean you all know that track by now!
‘Oxytocin’ is one of my faves on the album! It has a great beat and is what I would call a club-style track. You can move to this one and I would be surprised if people don’t use this at parties and events. It’s fun! Billie plays with her vocal range on this, and it is mixed into repetitive lyrics and layered vocals that sounds more like an echo.
‘GOLDWING’ starts with a church-choir-type sound. And though you think this may is the track, it soon picks up. The feeling of the track feels like it is going from something light to heavy.
‘Lost Cause’ – Ya’ll know this track too.
‘Halley’s Comet’ is a track about loving someone but I don’t think it’s reciprocated – “Halley’s Comet comes around more than I do”. It has a bit of a muffled/recorded style ending – Like it’s recorded on a phone.
‘Not My Responsibility’ is more of an interlude. A VERY POWERFUL ONE. And one people may not realise is out already. It is the audio that was her tour interlude before covid shut things down. Billie is talking about how people judge everything she does. “Or is your opinion of me Not My Responsibility”. This one really hit my emotions again and I feel like I still don’t know if that was for her or for me.
‘Overheated’ was an interesting one for me because all I noticed was, it felt like my brain couldn’t settle. It felt like the vocals and instrumental would disconnect or line up but then separate again. I couldn’t focus on the words. But I found that with a few tracks I heard. I would get lost in the instrumental play they are doing.
‘Everybody Dies’ has a beat that I noted as “muffled bass”. It sounded like Billie was talking about a friend who wanted to or did commit suicide, with the mention of “you are not alone”. But this could also be interpreted as outside looking in as well. We don’t really know, unless I missed it.
“Your Power, NDA & Therefore I Am” – You’ve all heard these tracks. One thing I did think about when hearing these back-to-back like this was, I wondered if these particular tracks were connected together very purposefully. They just really felt to me like 3 tracks that were meant to be back-to-back. I don’t know if it was because they build or vocally but yeah.
‘Happier Than Ever’ – I felt like this should have been the final track personally. It starts off with what is classic film-style sound. It felt vocal-focused, though you could clearly make out the playing of Ukelele. But obviously this album had quite a few instrumental/transition surprises and this track was no different. It transitioned to some gritty electric guitar and distortion with vocal layering. A rock moment out of nowhere. I don’t really like comparing artists but vocally I instantly thought of Amy Shark. But damn it was good. And that is why I thought it should have been the last track. Go out with a bang.
‘Male Fantasy’ is a slow acoustic track. I don’t know if I was still mind-blown by Happier Than Ever but it sounded like Billie was talking about a girl and I couldn’t tell if this was in reference to her sexuality or not, or a perspective of that. You could also hear a moment of her talking to Finneas as well. A little personal touch.
It is a lot to take in and I recommend listening to it a few times before you make your decision because it is A LOT to process. I mean this review is off one listen and I still think, wait did I miss something or did I hear that right?
I hope you’re excited and enjoy listening on Friday! I am definitely looking forward to listening to it by myself, with no interruptions.
HAPPIER THAN EVER – OUT THIS FRIDAY!
