Kacey Musgraves - Star Crossed (September 10, 2021) Album • Page 15

Feeling this a bit more this morning.

 

Yep I'm hugely into this album. The soundscapes on this are exquisite. It's somehow a surprise to me considering some early reviews made me think it would be far more overtly poppy and camp than it actually ended up being. There's tons of atmosphere, like the dreamy vibes that were present on Golden Hour are pretty much upped, and it's nice to even hear some trip-hop touches here and there. Early favorites are If This Was A Movie, What Doesn't Kill Me, Breadwinner, Cherry Blossom, and Simple Times.

I want to mention If This Was A Movie again because that one really floored me, I would love if she continues in this direction on future releases.

 

This is awesome so far. Only on If This Was A Movie, but I'm liking the slightly more pronounced pop beats going on most of the time.

 

On my first listen, I found it a little odd that people have been describing this as pointedly *not* the pop crossover album that was expected, because that's basically exactly what it seems like to me. Slightly more mellow pop, but still very poppy. I'm not an expert though and don't even really have a good grasp on what labels like 'pop' even mean anymore.

Sonically and musically, this strikes me as the very logical progression and next step after Golden Hour. Thematically and lyrically it's a whole different beast from that album, but I think we all know that going in. I will say that for a "divorce album" it came at things from a refreshing perspective, and took on that very dark, heavy subject in a pretty unique way.

This album strikes me as more of an overall mood piece as opposed to having individual tracks that really stand out on their own, but it is stacked with great songs and there are tons of really cool sonic flourishes all over it, and I have a feeling that these are the types of songs that just take a little bit of time to really open up to you. As a follow-up to Golden Hour it's in a little bit of a tough spot simply due to the fact that an album about divorce is never going to be as much fun to listen to as an album about new love and how great life is, but for me this is absolutely a worthy follow up to that album and builds off of it's sound and even it's themes nicely.

My only real negative on my first couple listens was that it ends strangely. The last two songs are far and away the weakest for me, and having the last song be in another language and also the weakest track musically ends the album on kind of a strange note. I did think the prominent maybe woodwind instrument sound in "There Is A Light" was fun and enjoyable, but the song also struck me as probably the campiest thing on the album, and I want to translate the lyrics to the closer to see if knowing what she is saying helps me connect with it a little bit more.

 

breadwinner...

 

is she implying that her husband was like spending her money, essentially? :o

 

The flute at the end of There Is A Light goes on a little too long, so much so that it brought back memories of Anchorman.

 

certainly seems like that. definitely seems strange that how publicly amicable this divorce was, then shes got songs like this and Justified which are basically putting all the blame on Ruston.

 

Not sure how to feel about this one.

 

I’ll be listening to the new Low record and this on my way to Pitchfork today

 

The run from easier said to keep lookin up is fantastic

 

the 2nd half of the album seems much better than the first half. but the last two songs are pretty bad. 'There is a Light' is this album's answer to 'High Horse', but much worse. and a lot of flute

 

damn, this is really good.

 

Justified was pretty two sided imo, at least the last chorus turns it around I found.

 

Literally the only thing I think about for the duration of "There Is a Light."

 

As someone who is a giant Ruston Kelly fan this album is tough for me. It's like putting a child in the middle of a divorce and asking them which parent they want to live with now.

 

There Is A Light rules

I have not seen Anchorman though

 

"There Is a Light" is fun, no digs.

I'm not sold on the closer, though. Feels like it came in from a different album.

The 1-2 of "Easier Said" and "Hookup Scene" is probably the highlight of the album for me, on early listens. Also adore "Cherry Blossom."

 

Good Wife is such a vibe

 

yea, she does turn it around on the last chorus... it shows some modicum of self-awareness. but the other 90% of the song feels like Ruston did her wrong a lot. haha

 

Divorces are never clean or easy, and none of these songs felt to me like her going too hard on her ex-husband, or landing too many cheap shots or anything like that. Justified to me feels extremely nuanced and balanced, and Breadwinner is about a lot more than just money. I mean, we are getting her side of the story here after all.

Knowing who she is singing about and being a fan of his as well is definitely an added wrinkle to this, and makes for a unique listening experience for me for sure.

 

Did you guys not get a chance to listen to "Camera Roll" yet? That's the song.

 

I loved "Camera Roll".

"Hookup Scene" really caught me off guard - I think I was expecting something upbeat and poppy kinda celebrating being single again and getting to go out there and meet people, and it's a devastatingly sad song with minimal instrumentation. Phenomenal song, just not what I was expecting at all with the title.

 

Feeling weird bc There Is A Light is one of my immediate faves on this. Gives me Japanese Breakfast vibes tbh.

 

"there is a light inside of me uh huh" sounds so madonna/lady gaga I lol'd in the theater