Sabrina Carpenter

Happy ‘Short n’ Sweet’ day! Friday 23rd August marks the release of Sabrina Carpenter’s sixth studio effort. At only 25 years old, it’s hard to believe that Carpenter’s discography already boasts this many albums. Skyrocketed to fame following the TikTok vitality of hits like ‘Feather’, ‘Espresso’ and ‘Please, Please, Please’, ‘Short n’ Sweet’ was as eagerly awaited as it is cohesive. But does the record break any new ground? Let’s dig in.

I always found it weirdly ironic that Carpenter’s biggest hits are sonically the ‘safest’ in her entire catalogue. For those who don’t know, prior to capitalising on the growing popularity of folk-influenced pop music, Sabrina released two gorgeously crafted mini-albums comprising an array of experimental tracks pushing the boundaries of contemporary music. These were ‘Singular: Act 1’ and ‘Singular: Act 2’. Both albums, to my dismay, failed to make an impact on the global charts, despite being nothing short of fantastic. Where the ‘Singular’ pair embrace the unconventional, ‘Short n’ Sweet’ adopts a safer formula, offering tracks which seem to have been manufactured for TikTok trends and ultimately don’t evidence a lot of sonic progression from her previous effort, ‘emails i can’t send’.

In spite of this criticism, it would be completely unfair to suggest that there aren’t some really strong songs on this album. Moreover, the vulnerable yet relatable lyricism is totally unmatched. Carpenter hits the ground running with the album’s first track, ‘Taste’. An anthemic pop tune with country influences, ‘Taste’ engages Sabrina’s listeners and readies then for the sonic rollercoaster to come. We then transition to ‘Please, Please, Please’ - the smash hit responsible for catapulting the Pennsylvania native to global fame and an indisputable banger in its own right. ‘Good Graces’, ‘Short n’ Sweet’s’ third song, I like to describe as ‘Nonsense’s’ sister track, an opinion I credit to the fact that both exist as the only RnB influenced songs on their respective predominantly folk-pop albums. Some listeners might be confused by the trap beats on a Sabrina Carpenter album - but I’d argue this serves only to enhance the versatility of the project. A great move!

Next comes ‘Sharpest Tool’ and ‘Coincidence’, tracks Carpenter sings like an intimate diary entry. Their lyricism is absolutely beautiful. However, in what will likely be an unpopular opinion, they’re too sonically similar to the likes of ‘how many things’ and ‘Bad for Business’, two features on the US starlet’s ‘emails i can’t send’. This, in turn, depicts the lack of progression I initially referred to.

For want of a less ‘Dad’ phrase, Sabrina does get a bit ‘funkier’ for the project’s halfway marker, ‘Bed Chem’, a track which is as fun and bouncy lyrically as it is musically. ‘Espresso’, track seven on the album, needs no analysis. We all know it, we all love it!

The review thus far would give the impression that I’m not the biggest fan of Sabrina’s and this couldn’t be further from the truth. I absolutely adore her craft and have been a fan for as long as I can remember - with the fandom stretching as far back as me playing the ‘EVOlution’ album through my iPhone 5 on the bus to secondary school. This is why it pains me to describe the following four tracks, namely ‘Dumb & Poetic’, ‘Slim Pickings’, ‘Juno’ and ‘Lie to Girls’ as fillers. They certainly aren’t bad, but they’re not memorable which is so soul destroying given the context of Carpenter being on an indisputably upward trajectory since the release of ‘Espresso’.

Sabrina clearly adopted the age old philosophy of ‘saving the best till last’ because ‘Don’t Smile’ is my favourite track on the record. Her sweet vocals over the heavier, 1975-esque production is, like the starlet herself, truly gorgeous. An instant classic with an infectious, replay inducing effect, ‘Don’t Smile’ is the perfect closing song.

Let me get one thing straight. This is absolutely NOT a bad album. I definitely think it’ll have mass appeal and do very well commercially. I think my criticisms stem from being such a huge Sabrina fan and wanting the project to exceed the expectations of her ever growing listenership. Lyrically, it’s fantastic and I’m certain of that. Sonically, there are peaks and troughs and a few too many fillers. Would I recommend the project to a new Sabrina fan though? I absolutely would!