Gay icon, saviour of pop, and above all, Canadian. Ms. Carly Rae Jepsen. The oh-so-sweet, girl next door, Canadian idol 3rd alternate you probably know from a song about perhaps giving her a call actually has 6 whole studio albums. I've got to give it to her, not everyone can experience finding love, falling out of love, and unrequited love and make 6 whole studio albums on those 3 themes exclusively but somehow, she did so, with flawless excecution.
Unless you're in the land of moose, like me, you probably first learnt about CRJ through that insistent earworm known as Call Me Maybe and unless you're gay, that's probably as far as you went. If you are straight, thanks for being here. Consider this an introduction to gay culture. When you're done you are of course legally required to paypal me 20 quid for all this unpaid labour. Don't worry, it will go to an excellent cause: The Slagatha & Deborah Iced Coffee and Vegan Sausage Roll Fund. While many straights didn't follow CRJ after her breakout hit, it was all it took to get the gays interested. Her following album E·MO·TION, critically underperformed but was beloved by her gay audience. I believe this says a lot about society: 1. Don't trust anything written by a straight person, 2. Gays can pay your bills too. Speaking of bills to pay, British Gas are on my ass rn so let's go!
6. Tug of war (2008)
You know you're in for a doozie when the best song on this album is called Bucket. It's honestly hard to say anything about this album cos it's just SO forgetful. It's guitar and vocals for 10 tracks and as much as I will defend her light voice, whoever was in the recording booth did her dirty. The selected singles, Bucket and Tug of War, are the most catchy but I wouldn’t say they are necessarily good. It’s very 2008, and much like all art in the Bush era, it doesn’t stand for much.
High Point: Tell Me has some cool bridge vocals.
Low Point: Heavy Lifting is so devoid of any motion it’s such a SLOG.
5. Dedicated (2019)
The follow-up to the beloved E·MO·TION, did it make the mark?? My answer? Eh, I guess? Sure, it's not the same as E·MO·TION and no it didn't prove to be as life changing however, it still stands as an album with at least several jams, hits, and hooks. It has the more "Carly-sounding" singles (Now That I Found You, Want You In My Room) but overall, the album is bit more laid back and funky. I've struggled to think about how I feel about this album when Slagatha told me, it's *your* review and how each of these records have impacted you. How did Dedicated impact me? Very little. It came out after E·MO·TION and I never really came back to it. It's not terrible, some even say it’s as good as E·MO·TION (hmm). For moi, it just didn’t connect.
I know every song well enough on this album and while I don't skip them whenever they come on, I certainly don't go out of my way to listen to them. There is no yearning. There's still loads of experimental genre-defying material to work with that is technically very good. Too Much, The Sound, and For Sure all play with a similar theme of repetition and it very clever how each song manages to keep you interested without getting boring. Party For One was also the slappin single that I was obsessed with. I suppose for me, it's like a fanta orange when I actually wanted a fanta lemon.
High Point: Julien, I don't love you but your voice just sounds so musical. She likes a subdued opener and this one just feels like a dreamy boy crush...God i'm so alone. Low Point: Feels Right ft. Electric Guest. Way to waste a collab. I don't know who they are and I am NOT interested. Sorry Carly, it's a perma skip.
4. KISS (2012)
~Knock Knock~ Oh sorry let me just answer the door real quick. Oh my god! It's Carly! She finally arrived! While the CRJ of Tug of War actually sounds like a 3rd alternate for Canadian Idol, her 2nd album sounds like the beginnings of a pop icon. Some of the gay pop elders are surely going to ostracise me for putting KISS above Dedicated but I can explain myself!! The thing is, I am what you would call, a dumb dumb. I like my music VAPID and DEVOID of any actual substance. I don't want to think any more about the collapse of the world as we know it more than I already do. I just want a direct line straight to the dopamine general store with daddy's credit card in my left hand, and a venti soy vanilla frape in my right. When I listen to KISS, that's what I feel like.
Deciding between different tracks is very hard. They are all nearly identical apart from...~sigh~ that one song that takes me back to my depressive teen years. I honestly couldn’t tell you if Call Me Maybe is a good song because it is so embedded in my consciousness thanks to Capital FM and the twice daily bus ride to school. KISS doesn't listen like an album, more like variations on the same theme: sickley-sweet pop. It shows you that you really need a bit of cool yogurt to appreciate that spicy harrisa. And then again, there are some days when all you want is that hot spicy paste right in yer gob! In such unprecedented times, the future looks BLEAK, and I really appreciate music that can make me get up and shake my booty like I don’t care. In the words of the painfully positive Good Time: "It's always a good time".
High point: "You're a bird in the water, I'm a fish on the ground" (Guitar String/Wedding Ring).
Low point: Your Heart Is A Muscle. Informative? Yes. However, much like me getting a D in a-level biology, it totally misses the mark (Mr. Howells, if you’re reading, I'm so sorry for letting you down).
3. Dedicated Side B (2020)
This album was really up against it, the b-side to the follow-up of the beloved classic. That's a lot of degrees of separation. I listened to it first when it came out and then promply forgot about it. Was I too harsh? Don't we all deserve a second (2nd) chance at redemption?? I don’t know if it’s the sheer repetition but I have grown to like this album very very much. There's some classic Carly fare (This Love Isn't Crazy, Stay Away) but overall, the album is a much more laid-back Carly than we've ever seen. The shadow of E·MO·TION can be seen in some of those sweet 80s synths (This Is What They Say) and some more funky, bassey bops (Summer Love) but it still manages to cultivate a unique sound for itself. There’s another nod to the party vibes of LA Hallucinations in Now I Don’t Hate California After All but with a more laid back tropical feel.
It took a while for me to come round to this more laid-back Carly but d’you know what that is? Growth. Sometimes I wanna shake my booty round the family dinner table, and other times I want a quiet afternoon of pensive reflection. And reflect on these songs you must. Much an onion cake, layers upon layers. I LIVE for the gay ass whirling sirens of Stay Away and how Felt This Way transitions so nicely into it. Heartbeat, despite its slow tempo is chocked full of quirky glissandos to keep you interested. Solo, is a double meaning cos it means being alone and ALSO she pronounces it like, so-low which I’m not joking, really impresses me. When I want to max out my dopamine receptors, I always have KISS. When I want an experience, I’ll go to Dedicated Side B.
High Point: Comeback ft. Bleachers. Such an appropriate name. Story of my life and not because of my days working the Penarth pier. It's cos I keep coming back to it. So sombre and heavy, this is the song that plays in the romcom when our hero has just had her heart broken </3.
Low Point: Let's Sort The Whole Thing Out. Also strong romcom feels although not the good kind. The kind with bad sexual politics and Channing Tatum as the romantic lead (i don't find thumbs sexy sorry).
2. E·MO·TION (Deluxe) (2015)
Snzzzzz........oh sorry, I was just being slept on. Just like E·MO·TION! This is the record that *should* have propelled CRJ to superstardom. If you ever needed evidence that straights rule the world, here it is (again, the paypal). I initially discovered Carly Rae through the memeification of the opening track Run Away With Me and that iconic sax line. Back then, it used to make me laugh and now it makes me e·mo·tion·al! It’s a weird nostalgic and happy feeling. I listened to this album a lot when I was living in a great house with friends in my final year of uni and it makes me think of those happy memories. Biased I know but this is MY review and MY opinions are heckin valid uwu!
Versatility is a word that come to mind. This album has it all. She’s pining for love (I Really Like You), breaking up with boys (Boy Problems), and even on the hunt for dick (I Didn’t Just Come Here To Dance). Musically, there’s a heavy 80’s synth influence that’s mixed with some disco and house along the way to keep it fresh. The album opens with the strongest hits (Run Away With Me, E·MO·TION, I Really Like You) and then ebbs and flows in tempo. Your Type sticks out to me. It comes mid-album and tells the story of not being the girl someone likes but, being the girl that’s more than a friend. It’s not like KISS hadn’t had songs about heartbreak (Tonight I’m Getting Over You), but this older, more mature Jepsen isn’t shying away from fully embracing the unadulterated sad. And the happiness too feels more earned. It’s no longer the trip to the dopamine general store. Instead, it’s a trip to the nice supermarket where you buy some nice ingredients, take some time to cook em’ up, and then savour your lovely creation.
High Point: Boy Problems. As a perpetual singleton, I can’t relate to a lot of romantic pop. I can however, relate to listening to other people’s boy problems. “If you’re gonna stay then stay, he’s not gonna change anyway”. I finally feel seen.
Low Point: Warm Blood. It’s different. A bit too grungy for me.
1. E·MO·TION SIDE B (2016)
The album opens with the sound of a cassette tape being turned over and every time I hear it, I. AM. READY.
E·MO·TION was 80s like cropped jeans and fanny packs. SIDE B is 80s like perms down to your asshole and shoulder pads up to the heavens. It is an amalgamation of all the best parts of Carly’s discography. There are powerful and upbeat synths (First Time, Higher), heavy and sombre jams (Cry) and practically a comedy song (Store). Side B came out a year after E·MO·TION and features 8 tracks cut from the original album. I can understand why. Having all of these in there would be too much for my gay heart to cope with. This record shows that sometimes less can be so, much, MORE. It combines the best of Jepsen’s work. The dopamine inducing hyperpop of KISS combined with the musical and thematic growth of E·MO·TION.
Despite being a shorter album, those 8 tracks show some real variety. It’s more upbeat and in your face than E·MO·TION yet still mixes it up enough to keep you interested. First Time and Higher are the head bangers. Fever is a forceful somber piece about someone moving on without you expressed in a somewhat unfortunate metaphor: "I caught your fever I'll be feeling it forever". And the sadness doesn't stop there. Cry is the palette cleanser in the delicious mezze that is SIDE B that also destroys toxic masculinity in the process, a win-win! On the flip side, Store shows you the most brutal way of breaking up with someone possible, by just going to the store. Permanently.
If we could get meta for a second ladies. This is a b side. It came out a year after E·MO·TION with no promo, no single, and no video either. It’s for the fans, and it’s that intimacy that keeps me coming back.
High Point: So hard to pick. I would have to say Cry, for telling men it’s ok to be a bit emosh sometimes.
Low Point: If I HAD to choose one. Roses is a good closer, but Love Again from the exclusive Japanese release of E·MO·TION would have been perfection.