Billie Eilish’s newest studio album, followed the same path as her previous ones of being recorded at her brother Finneas’ house while also being produced by him. Eilish has always shown off her range in music, but this album does all of it in one play.
HIT ME HARD AND SOFT according to Eilish’s website does exactly what it says, “hits you hard and soft both lyrically and sonically.” You can hear these hard and soft hits at the beginning of HMHAS.
The first song of HMHAS, titled “SKINNY”, is one of those songs that hits you softly as it’s a calming experience but still has so many feelings and experiences in it. Even though “SKINNY” sits near the middle for the length of the song it has very few lyrics in comparison to other songs on the album.
“SKINNY” talks about both body image issues and heartbreak that Eilish has gone through in recent years. The slow almost melancholy feel of this song is what a lot of people experience during both of those instances. “SKINNY” isn’t the only song to reflect the emotions that a person feels to the emotion that the song has in it.
“LUNCH” being the second song on the album creates almost a complete 180-degree flip from “SKINNY”. “LUNCH” is a more upbeat song which matches what this song is about.
“LUNCH” is a song that reflects Eilish coming out as bisexual a few years ago. The whole song is about how she fell in love with a girl. The upbeat sound of the song works in opposition to “SKINNY” which talks about her previous relationship that ended in heartbreak.
This upbeat lyrical piece in “LUNCH” doesn’t last long though. The third song titled “CHIHIRO” goes back to the sadness of lost love, but this time is more about the denial of love and how even if you try to win someone back, they might not come back.
“CHIHIRO” has a mix of sound from both “SKINNY” and “LUNCH” with an almost muffled sound to the beat that makes it seem like there is still hope that the upbeat tempo and feeling from “LUNCH” will return but slowly the feeling from “SKINNY” is returning.
HMHAS is a cohesive album that you should listen to from the beginning to the end. In stark contrast to most modern albums, HMHAS tells a story between songs rather than trying to have one or two standout songs meant for singles.
Connor Anderson can be reached at [email protected]