After the release of her first album, Rina Sawayama was not only able to book features with hyperpop darling Charli XCX and Sir Elton John. Even Lady Gaga invited her to mix her song “Free Woman” and the BRIT Awards, at her request, rewrote the selection criteria for nominating British artists (now applies: those who have lived in the UK for more than five years can be on the list) .
With HOLD THE GIRL, two years after their debut, Sawayama presents an elaborately produced pop album that, as usual, is bursting with musical references from the noughties. And still manages to dress noughties melancholy in futuristic pop. A polished kitsch work of art from our old MP3 player songs, so to speak. And maybe too overloaded to go through the roof in the mainstream – unless the songs are trending on TikTok, because anything is possible there.
The record sees itself not only as an ode and hug to her younger self, whose experiences are not reflected in a mainstream society, but also as an empowerment for the queer community. So “This Hell” shows the metaphorical middle finger to queer hostility, wrapped in synthetic club beats and glam metal riffs – if it’s hell, then at least it’s in style. Songs like “Imagining” could be straight out of PC Music’s hyper-pop clique, while the title track has country overtones, only to be replaced by orchestral strings and drum’n’bass beats. Rina Sawayama is a master of genre eclecticism and creates catchy and challenging pop on HOLD THE GIRL in equal measure.
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