Halsey: Badlands

                     Halsey's Badlands is her first album and features two of her three top singles; "Ghost", and "New Americana".  This album has contributed to Halsey's recent fame that began with her debut EP Room 93.  This album is the true showcase of Halsey's talent, through the inventive lyrics and the hypnotizing background music.  There is a haunting feel to this album, through the eerie melodies and the torturous emotion behind the lyrics in the songs.  Just like Bastille's VS. Other People's Heartache, Halsey gets out this intense emotion in an almost aggressive manner, making dark topics enjoyable.  There's an underlying theme of overthrowing the system that has already been established, and breaking free of the chains of such an outdated system of gender roles.  Halsey's bold choice to make her first album conceptual on this idea of change could have ended her career before it began but her uncanny ability to manipulate her voice made this one for the books.

            Within the past five years major political issues have been brought up and have led to major change in U.S. politics but as Halsey points out, there’s a long way to go.  The use of legal marijuana and gay marriage are the most major political changes that have been brought up recently.  Through years of fighting the battle for recognition, same-sex marriage was legalized in June of this year.  Halsey’s themes of rebellion and escaping the ties of societal standards perfectly expresses the rebellion required to make such an impact.  And with all of that change, the Federal Government in the U.S. has established that if a state wishes to legalize the use of marijuana, they can.  Alaska, Oregon, Colorado, and Washington have legalized the use of marijuana recreationally and medically.  With all of these advances, there are still setbacks that were established many decades ago.  States can legalize marijuana but they can’t sell it legally for recreational use.  So even though it isn’t illegal to consume it, it is illegal to obtain it in a regulated and controlled way.  Halsey’s album expresses this theme of attempting to take one step forward and realizing that it didn’t result in any progression.  How can anyone take a step in the right direction when there are societal boundaries preventing anything from changing? 

            A very similar issue that is always addressed but makes very slow strides toward change, is the issue of gender roles. Decades of the perpetuated idea of female and male, social and economic roles has led to one of the largest issues in America.  Women have fought for their right to vote and to work but they still are treated as lesser individuals.  The idea of defying these established gender roles and starting a new culture is very prevalent through Badlands.  Halsey tries to establish how difficult it is to be oneself, if they are always being controlled by pre-existing standards.  Men have been the domineering figures restricting women’s choices, and Halsey can’t stand it.  Women have gained more freedom in the workplace, and in traditional roles but there is still a lingering tone of inferiority.  Now it has become more acceptable for couples to have the woman making more income than her male counterpart.  This issue impacts every aspect of human interaction from popularity in the music industry to household expectations.  Halsey, even as young as she is, recognized that and addressed it in her album. This issue impacts every aspect of human interaction from popularity in the music industry to household expectations.  Halsey, even as young as she is, recognized that and addressed it in her album.

          The opening number "Castle" sets the tone for the whole album.  It opens with the skin crawling sound of buzzing and a faint ringing and then the beat is established.  The lyrics open by bashing the requirements of being poised and peaceful and expressing how the journey to the top is gonna be a fight.  She opens herself up by saying that she's already a target, so why should she waste her time crying about it.  Instead "[She's] heading straight for the castle."  "Castle" gives the listener a taste of the musical style of the album, with a dark and upbeat musical style and vocals that are flawless.  Halsey's vocal range is unbelievable but she mostly displays her vocal control in this album; through riffs and her ability to put her emotion into her singing.  

           Next the song "Hold me Down" expresses how Halsey's “demons” led her to speak her mind and become belligerent.  These voices tearing her down, convince her to open her mouth and speak up for herself but then they take her too far.  In a way, her “demons” give her the push to assert herself, to try to defy the social expectations.  But the down side is that it can go too far.  She even talks about how she gave herself to someone and they put her down through praising her.  Giving her condescending compliments that slowly tear down self esteem.  Then she realized that it wasn't her want to stay down, it was the "devil" that was holding her down.  She defies gender roles at every turn of this album and this song shows another defining rebellion.  This song holds a more upbeat tempo with eerie background sounds of wooshing and backup vocals, but stays on brand to Halsey's vocals.  In a way, this song is a song of revelation, showing how she gets up even though someone is holding her down.  

          Halsey then sings "New Americana" which is a song about escaping the old and becoming the new.  This song is the climax of the album musically.  The tempo and bass for this song give it an addictive quality, being one of the songs that gets played over and over because just once isn't enough.  Through listening closely, small but significant sound effects are added throughout the songs like a group of people echoing a phrase or yells of agreement in the background can be noticed.  This song in particular is artfully created and all of the little details seamlessly fit together.  This song is the one that has the most effort in it and is definitely the most important in establishing the theme of the album.  The entire song is about how Halsey's group is defying the culture of our time and they will leave their legacy.  They were raised on "Biggie and Nirvana" and together they will be the change society needs.

          The rest of the album mostly speaks upon Halsey's experiences of being put down by a significant other and getting back up from them.  She references being used and manipulated by a man in "Colors".  In the song he makes her change to suit his lifestyle and then once she has conformed, he leaves her.  It's as if in that song, the male followed the stereotypical gender roles but when he tried to change Halsey to fit them too, she wasn't good enough.  The songs transition into describing his aftermath by saying that his dominance still haunts her.  This idea of being haunted by a domineering, gender role conforming man, is expressed through "Haunting" and then carried out into the final song "Ghost".

          Between those two songs, the tone changes from being put down to sticking up for oneself.  Defying gender roles, and fighting for individuality is the major theme expressed through "Control" and "Young God" and this concludes the album perfectly.  "Control" continues the dark and eerie vibe of the album while establishing the change in tone.  The lyrics speak of demons and children crying out of fear, but it's all a manifest of Halsey's fear in defying social standards.  Halfway through the song, the music slows down and the piano chimes in a high pitched, creepy tempo.  During this time, the tone changes and Halsey accepts her fear and establishes that she's become familiar with her demons.  She ends the song by saying "God Damn Right, you should be scared of me" because she is coming into her own and standing up for herself.  "Young God" perpetuates the idea of growing strength and getting people to join the cause.  At the end "Ghost" establishes how no matter what Halsey is searching for someone to fill a void but now she isn't look to be subservient to anyone.  This song states that she's looking for someone to love and leave, to not get attached and move on.  This song was Halsey's top single before the album came out but it has a very sad undertone to it.  It's about finally being free of the gender roles of relationships but along the way she closed her heart to people.  She conquered the gender stereotype even at the expense of her relationship.  That's a very brave move on her part and it shows how dedicated she is to her cause. The album chronologically tells a story of conquering the stereotypes of the world and creating a new system/ generation.  

         This album overall establishes that our society is flawed and someone needs to fix it.  Whether or not that someone is Halsey and her followers is yet to be determined but through this album, she's made it very clear that she is trying.  For an opening album this makes a bold statement but, with the perfect musicality and the vocal expertise of Halsey, it's not overpowering.  Halsey's voice is not entirely unique like Bad Suns or Bastille, but her ability to control it makes it so powerful.  With a message like this on her first album, we definitely have more to come.  Hopefully someone will truly make an impact on gender roles and change the lopsidedness of our social standards.

        

Have you experienced something that made you want to rebel and fight for a better outcome?

Bastille: Vs. (Other People's Heartache, PT. III)

             Vs. (Other People's Heartache Pt. III) is Bastille's seventh album (including EP's).  This is the third part of a series of albums where Bastille sings songs original to other artists and the majority of these covers feature a variety of artists.  This album is their most recent release and, unlike the others, only includes original songs.  Bastille has made this album perfectly angsty and intense for an album about heartache.  Every song is fast paced and has a thrilling chorus where the guitar picks up and the heartache is entirely palpable.  There's so much emotion in this album that its hard to listen to without feeling something.  It is a very cathartic album, in the sense that it makes something sad and unbearable into a rock ballad.  The power of the instrumentation and vocals expels all of the unwanted emotions being felt.  Unlike sappy, sad albums that make people dwell on unhappiness, this album is like yelling and getting all of it out of your system.  And at the same time, Dan Smith and the other artists aren't screaming or yelling, they just have an intensity in their voices that creates that feeling.  

                Dan Smith has a incredibly recognizable alternative voice.  His voice has an unbelievable range, but he mostly stays in a higher key.  He has the guttural intonation of George Ezra but the clarity and range of James Bay.  That combination  makes one of the most well-known alternative artists of this decade.  His most recognizable song Pompeii got him to the top of the charts and ever since he has been experimenting with musical techniques, which led to this album.  It involves echoing vocals and auto tuning his voice to unreachable low octaves.  Even the instrumentation has become more bold through including a string quartet in Fall Into Your Arms and warped drum notes in Bite Down.  This album in particular contains an enumerable amount of unique musical sounds that add to the aesthetic of the album.  All of the musical aspects are incorporated into the overarching theme of heartache.  

               The theme is so relate-able that there is a lot of leeway to include different allusions and incorporate new musical techniques.  Bastille utilized that freedom and ran with it.  Their skill showed through when all of the unrelated and distinct techniques were manipulated into a cohesive record.  They utilized references that were so vastly different in culture and related them to heartache.  In the song Torn Apart by Bastille, featuring GRADES and Lizzo, the artist GRADES references Yin Yang through the line “My yin and yang is killin’ me/ gotta get back, back to the synergy."  This symbol is immediately recognizable as the balance between good and bad.  Yin Yang is a Chinese philosophical symbol that has been around since the 14th Century B.C.  In Chinese culture, it represents the extremes of the world that result in balance. In this song it supports the idea that someone's heart has been broken and its knocked their center of balance off.  GRADES raps this particular line and it shows how even ancient culture can be used to explain modern heartache.

              Another major allusion Bastille made was in The Driver  to Romeo and Juliet.  This is one of the few songs Bastille performs alone but it is also one of the best.  The intensity of the song and the ability of it to go from a soft melody to a vivacious guitar-backed chorus and back again, makes it one of the most memorable songs. The reference to Romeo and Juliet in the line “Shout out from the bottom of my lungs/ A plague on both your houses/ This thing/ It’s a family affair/ It’s drawing out my weakness”  adds to the beauty of this song.  Shakespeare is one of the most  well-known playwrights and therefore this reference is impossible to miss.  Also, the storyline of Romeo and Juliet is one of the iconic tragedies and showcases of heartache ever.  It's the story of two young lovers from dueling families.  The story is tragic because even though there love was true, their circumstances resulted in their deaths.  This allusion builds upon the immense broke-hearted feeling throughout this song.  Bastille uses this reference to establish how iconic heartache is and relate with the younger generation.

           The entire album makes for a whirlwind of emotion from unbearable heartache to a freedom from the pain that's been haunting someone.  It's an album that can make up for a bad night or help relate to the pain people have felt.  Throughout the entire album allusions to the 90's and 80's can be made through the chosen featured artists and even broader references through the lyrics.  The featured artists GRADES, Lizzo, Angel Haze, Rag n Bone, Skunk Anansie, and Braque are from previous decades.  They achieved their fame far before Bastille.  There are also artists, such as HAIM, that relate to modern generations.  Including bands from varying decades adds to Bastille's credibility in saying that heartache is a universal feeling.  Bastille was able to make Chinese philosophical symbol and a classic play all relate to the same theme.  This album showcases how talented Bastille is in utilizing broad and unique aspects of music and culture and relating them to heartache.  He was intelligent enough to choose a widely felt emotion that transcends time and medium and manipulate all of those mediums into one cohesive album.  I haven't experienced gut-wrenching heartache in my life so far but through this album I can see how awful it is and how strengthening it is to pick oneself up from that.  I can also relate better to the theme of heartache in other mediums because this album gave me insight, I hadn't had before.

Do you know of any albums that incorporate countless allusions to culture that all blend together to support one main theme (ex. Heartache)?

(I did not include any of the videos because they are very strange and definitely don't relate to the songs.  If you want to see a ton of cultural allusions unrelated to the album, the video for bad_news is filled with them.  The video for Torn Apart is very creepy and definitely inappropriate, with very few cultural allusions.)