The second album by Norwegian singer and songwriter Marie Ulven I'm doing it again baby! it is an introspective gem
Girl in red it makes the bedroom pop for a bedroom around the world. Marie Ulven was an introverted Norwegian teenager from the small port of Horten when she became a cult figure with lo-fi house tunes like 'I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend' and 'Summer Depression'. As Girl in Red, she exploded into bona fide stardom with her debut album in 2021 If only I could make it quiet, in deeply personal songs about struggling with mental health and embracing her queer identity. She became much more famous than she ever expected, especially with Finneas-produced 'Serotonin'. He even spent time last summer opening for fan Taylor Swift on the Eras tour.
On I'm doing it again baby!, Ulven picks up where she left off, in candid synth-pop diary entries about her emotional turmoil. But now, at 25, Ulven has opened up her range, trying to capture the highs as well as the lows. He even sings about the exotic experience of a happy mood, as if describing a trip to Mars. On the opener “I'm Back,” he shouts, “Hey, I showered today!” Sometimes it's the small victories that count.
Throughout these songs, Ulven sums up the life lessons she's learned in the years since her debut, with her realization that “Time doesn't stop for a sad little girl.” I'm doing it again baby is as personal and vulnerable as ever, written and produced with her partner Matias Tellez. She's still her old melodramatic self, confessing, “I know I've got a penchant / Melancholic tragedy always seems to follow me.” However, he pursues positivity on the title track, a lively New Order-esque synth groove where he boasts: “I've got the Japanese jeans / and the loafers on my feet / Lookin' like a rock star from the '70s.”
Just like on her debut, Girl in Red really shines when she turns up the energy level on pissed-off songs where she gets her heart pumping. “Phantom Pain” features warped guitar and distorted vocals as he croons “Let me love you if you let me” until it turns into a hauntingly obsessive loop. “Do you need me now?” it's a vicious kiss, with an excellent guest verse from Sabrina Carpenter. Ulven really knows how to introduce a guest star, exclaiming, āYou know what would be really cool about this? Sabrina!ā In the finale “*****”, he goes for Studio 54 disco glitz, singing, “Five star rating and I'm writing a hit.” But even when it's tough, Girl in Red has the same emotional honesty that made her a star.
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