Caroline Rose, my favorite lady in red, dropped her new album “Superstar” today, and she immediately captured me just like she did with her 2018 album “LONER”. Slinky beats with under-the-radar genius lyrics, it almost feels like Caroline Rose is making music specifically for me to groove to. I’ve only listened to the album thrice so far, so please don’t call me an expert here. I’ll probably sit with this album for a couple years, watch it become my best friend, and then slowly prepare myself for Rose’s next sonic gift. I’m not crazy, I’m just a real big fan and rooting for this self-proclaimed “underdog”. To get you groovin’, here’s the first single she released off the album earlier this year.
There’s only so much that a person can take
Too much abuse and somebody’ll break
I took a pill and I hopped on a plane
And I’m never looking back again
‘Cause I am on a strike against my body and mind
What once was pain is now pleasure of mine
It really doesn’t matter what you’re going through, this verse will hit you if you pay enough attention to get the lyrics in. What once was pain is now pleasure of mine. Call it sadistic, but whether it’s physical, mental or emotional abuse, you can eventually get to a breaking point where you’ve been cracked so deeply by something, that it’s become a part of your ecosystem and can eventually bring you joy. Something we know about abuse in general is you can’t just pretend it didn’t happen. Portrayed in an upbeat fashion, it’s a therapeutic way to muse over any pain or trauma you’re working towards overcoming. Or, I’m just a masochist. Either way.
Everybody’s so quick to stand up and say you gotta be this way or that way
Gotta ask yourself is this really what I wanted
Everybody’s so quick to cry out and say you gotta get your shit together
Well baby watch me freak out
True that sister. LA wants to put you in a box, but I say glory be to the stubborn weirdos who let their crazy out and wear wigs and silver trench coats on a Tuesday morning.
Listening to Caroline Rose is like hanging out with your college radio friends in a dingy, graffitied radio station smoking a joint, kicking up weird dances, and doodling roosters and fish on the carpeted walls. Each track off this album is an independent journey that stills finds a common quirk to tie it all in together. So yes, to answer the question of the year: ALBUMS STILL MATTER! (Sorry for getting political, ’tis the season).
Rose, known for being the realest of the real, breaks down what it’s like to be thrown aside for the supposed “better” version of yourself with “Someone New”. (Doesn’t she look so beautiful and natural in her cover art?)
Here you go Weekend Warriors, have a ball with “Superstar” and let me know your favorite track!
