She’s working late, ‘cause she’s a singer.
Sabrina Carpenter released her fifth studio album, “Short n’ Sweet,” on Friday. It is a collection of love triangles, humorous jabs at exes and devilish innuendos. Totaling 36 minutes, the pop star’s album is flirty, wholly unserious and not so bold.
The album kicks off with “Taste,” a jangle-pop melody about a love triangle. Additionally, Carpenter released a horror-laden music video for the song, featuring actress Jenna Ortega.
Later in the album, we are reminded of Carpenter’s sense of humor in “Espresso” and “Please Please Please.” Ceiling fans are a pretty good invention, right? Carpenter thinks so.
The bubbly songs come to a pause in “Sharpest Tool.” This song is not as bold as the others, discussing a one-sided relationship and a lack of communication. While the music is upbeat, Carpenter’s lyrics convey a feeling of confusion and resentment, showing a more vulnerable side of the normally carefree singer.
In Carpenter’s two-minute acoustic ballad, “Dumb & Poetic,” she says goodbye to a man of wellness, taking jabs as she went: “Save all your breath for your floor meditation,” and “I promise that mushrooms aren’t changing your life.”
Moving through the album, Carpenter goes country with the silly “Slim Pickins,” a song that channels both Dolly Parton and Kacey Musgraves through vocal trills and plucky guitar rhythms. Carpenter also tackles something as serious as pregnancy and creates a new pop culture reference with “Juno”: “If you love me right, then who knows? / I might let you make me Juno.”
As the record comes to an end with “Lie to Girls” and “Don’t Smile,” Carpenter’s breathy vocals take the spotlight, reminiscent of singers such as Mariah Carey and Ariana Grande. She also takes a more vulnerable approach in these songs, freely airing out frustrations with an ex.
“Short n’ Sweet” took various directions in each song, jumping from flirty and fun to unguarded and resentful.
What will she do next? Who knows. Isn’t that sweet? Carpenter guesses so. That’s that her espresso.
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