BADLANDS by Halsey (1/5)

Must Hear Tracks: “Coming Down” “Young God” “Ghost”

Halsey’s music is garbage. It’s not the unlistenable kind of garbage, its the kind of garbage that exists to fill some musical niche created by the success of other artists. File her under “trendy pop music.” My theory on Halsey is that she is a temporary substitute for (or distraction from) Lorde, Tove Lo, or Lana Del Rey. She works well as an imitator though. Her music probably isn’t interesting enough to define her niche. She is being marketed to Lana and Lorde’s fan bases as a disposable but temporarily satisfying new face.

Just because Halsey is a disposable artist and her music is figurative garbage doesn’t mean there aren’t catchy tunes on Badlands. The obvious hit is “New Americana,” with it’s well paced melody and slick production. It loses most of its lasting appeal by being half-heartedly over-the-top, with calculated name drops (James Dean, Biggie, and Nirvana). It sounds like it desperately wants to be liked. Ironically enough, the universally pandering lyrics are what makes it so unlikable. Initially satisfying, ultimately forgettable.

The lowest-common-denominator style of song writing hangs over the most of Badlands, not just “New Americana.” This is the record’s most obvious flaw. Halsey’s voice is powerful, her melodic runs and hooks are usually simple and catchy, and the production matches the dynamics of her voice well. These are all qualities that should add up to an enjoyable listening experience. Of course, that’s discounting the fact that these songs also have the painfully impressive quality of being too generic to connect to. I feel like I’ve heard her songs before. Lorde writes the best powerful female teen pop, and Tove Lo writes top-notch new-age love songs. Halsey upstages neither, while bringing nothing new to the table.

Luckily, Badlands does offer a few diamonds in the rough. “Young God” perfectly encapsulates the perceived feeling of invincibility caused by young love. It’s plays like a modern fairy tale with a somewhat perverse (but inevitable) ending. “Coming Down” also has a love-religion connection, as the narrator finds “God” and “the devil” in a lover, though she doesn’t indicate if these roles are played by the same lover or different ones. These tracks contain some of the most genuine and interesting passages on Badlands. Rounding out the trifecta of redeeming tracks is “Ghost” which is, loosely put, a song about catching feelings for a fuck boy. The trendiness of the subject matter makes “Ghost” far more endearing than most of Badlands. At least this parade of single-serving pop music ends on a high (read: average) note. (1/5)