We’ve talked a lot about Sabrina Carpenter recently because she’s an artist we feel all of you need to check out. Especially as she has recently released her new album Singular: Act 1 which steps away from sugary pop into a mature, polished musical realm. In the weeks leading up to the album’s release fans were teased with the release of tracks including Paris and Bad Time setting up the scene for some of Sabrina’s strongest and confidently performed material to date. We’re going to tell you exactly what we thought of the first Act of Singular and show you why you need to keep your eyes open for the second Act ‘coming soon’.
Almost Love
Lead single and opening track Almost Love starts with a funky key beat, giving you the impression Sabrina is here and wanting your attention immediately. When we first heard this track we instantly loved the feisty, sassy vocals from the singer ‘No more taking it slow, it’s almost love’ knowing that she wants to take the next step. Throughout there are whistles in the background, as we envision a squad of high school teens taking over the baseball field with a kick-ass dance. One track in and we’re already seeing Sabrina has hit the next stage of her musical journey, maturing through her lyrics and also sound since 2016 EVOlution.
Paris
In releasing Paris prior to the album release it’s meant fans have been able to fall in love with this track already. This passionate track once again sees the singer getting straight to the point, knowing just what she wants; a Parisian lover so she goes there to seek it ‘It’s so romantic in Paris, won’t even try to compare it’. The dreamy synths and big build up to the upbeat later part of the track, we all know how much Sabrina loves the city but we’ve now fallen for the track too!
Hold Tight
Hold Tight features hip-hop artist Uhmeer and this track is completely different to the first two on the release. It’s sexy with Sabrina singing of wanting to change it up ‘Don’t take this as complaining just little rearrangements of the nights that we’ve been taking’. Complimenting this and making it a sensual little number is Uhmeer’s rap ‘Hit me underneath the covers, colouring your body, reading braille‘. We’ll let you work out what that means for yourself… We absolutely love the RnB vibes the track oozes in with beat drops, bouncy synths and a really heavy underlying bass beat. There’s so much energy and sexual tension that this feels like the ultimate club track.
Sue Me
A hard-hitting backbeat, with Sabrina’s vocals laying over them open for a huge bridge and the biggest chorus of the release. Vocally this is stunning, there’s so much confidence oozing throughout the vocals and when she sings ‘Sue me for looking so pretty tonight’ it turns into a powerful anthem. Singing of ending a relationship and there still being ties with places you both go, the friendship groups and how even if you don’t like it she’s going to end up right on top as you can’t and won’t forget her. It’s incredible, we’ll go as far as saying this might be one of our all-time favourite Sabrina Carpenter tracks. The ultimate anthem for when you want to take control and just be a little tongue in cheek.
prfct
The delicate introductory chimes of prfct open up the obligatory ballad every release needs. Singing of a relationship not being perfect but understanding it doesn’t need to be to be worth fighting for. ‘If perfect was the kinda thing that worked for me, but I wanna feel nervous, just a little bit off the edge’ is a standout lyric which we find ourselves drawn to singing along to. Something being perfect isn’t always the best, being kept on your toes in a relationship with twists and turns is a good thing. Vocally we see everything from the highest high notes to some good old backing vocals and a short, sharp and sweet ending.
Bad Time
There’s a theme running throughout this release and that’s love. But the way in which Sabrina writes and sings about is twisted, showing both the good and the bad from Being in love to thinking you’re over it. The poppiest track on Singular: Act 1 is Bad Time which upon its release showed how more than capable she is of writing empowering songs for girls (and guys) to get behind. The sass is real, showing that she’s taking no prisoner with the catchy ‘Bad time for a good time, baby’ lines sticking totally in your head. Instead of writing this as a sad track about being messed around it’s turned into throwing it right back in their face in the form of a catchy, boogie-worthy track.
Mona Lisa
The shortest track on the release by far is Mona Lisa another RnB edged track, with a smooth beat which finds its own footing as we reach the chorus. There’s a lot of different textures here; musically there are synths providing some extra driving beats and so much more making it a busy track. We’ve said this before but Sabrina has really found ‘her’ sound during this release, it’s a confident release and this track makes it impossible to not sing along to ‘Don’t leave me hanging like the Mona Lisa’. We salute you Sabrina Carpenter; you talented lady who writes the catchiest tracks.
Diamonds Are Forever
With a name like Diamonds Are Forever we’re expecting big things and that’s exactly what’s delivered. This theatrical track is simply incredible, it’s the biggest song we’ve heard on the release so far and vocally we see new heights reached thanks to the orchestral backing. Sincere, slick but emotive all at the same time Sabrina’s vocals make this one of those big, belter tracks you fall in love with instantly. Sabrina is right when she says ‘I am a diamond, and diamonds are forever’ because we think this song is going to be remembered forever for being one of the most elegant, grown-up and all round great tracks Sabrina Carpenter has created. She might say ‘Money don’t buy class’ but she doesn’t need to worry as this track proves she has it in the bucketloads. One word: Flawless.
Sabrina Carpenter is an artist who evolves release after release but without losing what makes her such a special talent in the first place. It feels as if this is who she wants to be, in control and it shows in the quality of the music created. We love seeing how proud Sabrina is across her socials of this album and she deserves to be. Singular: Act 1 is an all-round musical masterpiece, it might at times be a lot different to what we were expecting but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. We’ve got high hopes for what’s to come with Singular: Act 2 when it’s released in hopefully the near future.
What’s your favourite Sabrina Carpenter track? Tweet us @CelebMix and let us know!
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