#firstimpression: HALSEY: THE GREAT IMPERSONATOR

by Michael McCarthy

I will write a proper review of this album soon, but I wanted to share some of my initial thoughts because I was mighty impressed and the album comes out today.

Halsey’s new album is out today. It’s called The Great Impersonator and it’s truly brilliant. This is her fifth album. I loved all four of the others, though I was slightly less into the album Manic, which felt too much like she was trying to make radio friendly pop or something. Her last album was produced by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross and it was excellent. But I do habe one small complaint about that album, If I Can’t Have Love I Want Power, which is that some of the songs felt too short. Whenever I felt like I was really getting absorbed in some of them, they would just end. Most songs kind of climax where a guitar solo would be, the part they call the middle 8, and then they go on for another thirty seconds or so after that. But those Halsey songs would kind of climax and just be done. I kept feeling like I was listening to incomplete songs. Anyway, onto The Great Impersonator, this one does not suffer from short song syndrome. The first song is even over six minutes long. So these songs feel like fully fleshed out ideas and don’t leave you feeling cheated by the time they end like some of the songs on the last album.

I’ve only listened to the first half of The Great Impersonator so far to be honest, but it’s easily remarkable enough for me to call the album brilliant. Even if the rest of the songs turned out to be duds, the first half of the record make it essential anyway. The reason I’ve only listened to the first half so far is that it’s a long album and I keep putting it on but then something calls me away before I get to finish it. But I’m definitely going to finish it today.

If you’ve never liked Halsey, this album would probably turn you into a fan especially if you like songs that bridge the gap between pop and singer/songwriter fare. And if you’ve liked any of Halsey’s albums in the past, I’m quite certain that you’d love this one.

Edited to add:

I just found out about some of the horrible stuff Halsey has been through the last few years. For one thing, she has leukemia and lupus, which were both diagnosed during the time between her new album and the last one. She was also dropped by her record label, but fortunately she found another major label deal with Columbia. In any case, I was already in love with her brutally honest lyrics on this album but now they’ll seem even deeper.

Also, jeers to NME for their weird review. They gave it a positive review to be honest but they also said some stupid things. For one thing, they compare the lyrics to two different songs and say that they contradict each other. And as if that wasn’t irksome enough, at the end of the review they say the album “is Halsey’s most honest album – that is if you choose to believe her.” Seriously, what the fuck kind of comment is that? They mention her leukemia and lupus and other struggles in the review and at first it seems they liked the lyrics but then they argue that two songs contradict each other and for the cherry on top of the rotten sundae they dare to suggest that she might be lying? Who the hell are they to judge if her album is honest? Considering that her pain can easily be traced to the leukemia and lupus issues, you’d think they would at least give her the benefit of the doubt even if they thought some lyrics contradicted each other.

Also, I don’t feel like she should be criticized for some lyrics seeming to contradict each other. Maybe some of them do. But people have good days and bad days. One day you might feel entirely loved and another day it might seem like the whole world is against you. So who cares if some songs contradict each other? Is she not allowed to have a wide range of feelings? Is there some law that every song on an album has to be either uplifting or depressing? Normally, critics tend to applaud albums that are diverse so I don’t know how they can act like they’re calling out a liar with their review. I used to really respect NME and have often loved their reviews but their comments about The Great Impersonator really annoyed me.

Edited to add 2:

Now I’ve listened to the entire new album by Halsey. And I was definitely right about it being brilliant. Interestingly, she has a song on there called “Lucky” where the chorus is the chorus of Britney Spears’ song “Lucky.” Not only does she use the lyrics, she sings the chorus with the same melody of the Britney Spears’ song, too. But she wrote the lyrics for the verses and they’re pretty deep. Definitely one of the best songs on Halsey’s new album.

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