After a four-year hiatus from the spotlight, Lorde released her new album, Solar Power, earlier last month. Renee Whalen speaks to the singer’s return… and what she represents to a generation of listeners.
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Sound: “Solar Power” by Lorde
Solar Power was inspired by the music of the sixties and early 2000s. The title track’s anxiety-free lyrics and sunshiny melodies aren’t exactly what fans were expecting from the 24-year-old singer. Lorde was once the voice of teen angst and rebellion. But this album has a certain brightness that’s unlike anything we’ve heard from her before.
Sound: “Solar Power” by Lorde
I still remember the first time I heard Lorde. I was a freshman in high school and I had a fat crush on this boy who lived down the street from me. I thought his “underground” music taste was so cool. At the time, nobody knew who Lorde was. He sent me a link to one of her songs, called “Tennis Court.”
Sound: “Tennis Court” by Lorde
Almost immediately after the release of her hit album, Pure Heroine, Lorde was no longer “underground.” By the time “Royals” hit the radio, she quickly became a mega pop star.
Sound: “Royals” by Lorde
Her lyrics offered our generation something that other pop music wasn’t getting at. She gave voice to what it actually felt like growing up in post-internet adolescence and the unattainable expectations that come with it.
Sound: “Royals” by Lorde
For many of us, who grew up during the height of her stardom, Lorde got us through a lot. There was a certain realness to her music. Her brutally deep lyrics sometimes felt like an old friend. Like, “I know this sucks, but I’m going through this with you.”
Sound: “White Teeth Teens” by Lorde
But for the past four years, Lorde has been nowhere to be found. She hasn’t been releasing music or anywhere on social media. So the release of this new album was long-awaited, to say the least. But now, the singer offers us something…different.
Sound: “Solar Power” by Lorde
When I first listened to Solar Power, it was clear that Lorde had changed. She refers to the album as, “a celebration of the natural world.” It was inspired by her trip to Antarctica (and a generous amount of weed). Solar Power captures a certain high that many of us wish we could have felt this past year. If only we weren’t tied to the walls of our childhood bedrooms. But Lorde’s not trying to relate to us anymore. She’s abdicating the throne of influencer. And she invites us to stop looking to her—or the internet for that matter—for answers.
Sound: “The Path” by Lorde
Fans have reacted differently to Solar Power and Lorde’s return. For some, it feels too “floaty” and “bright” after a year of isolation. For others, it feels like the perfect summer playlist. For me, it feels like a wake-up call…
Sound: “The Path” by Lorde
Maybe there’s a lesson in all of this. Maybe Lorde in 2013 never had our answers. And maybe all of our own personal “Lordes,” whoever they may be, don’t have the answer after all. In her new album, Solar Power, Lorde reminds us to stop looking to everyone else to tell us who we are. Celebrities, influencers, and icons, like herself, are all on this “broken path” with us.
Sound: “The Path” by Lorde
For Ampersand Radio, on Annenberg Media, I’m Renee Whalen.
Sound: “The Path” by Lorde