Billie Eilish's second album, Happier than Ever, has been released after weeks of promotion and some great singles. Early reactions have been positive. The record's initial spins quickly show why. It is a sharp collection of pop songs that are multilayered and delivered in Eilish's quiet but intense style. There is no witty opening, and no playful I have pulled out my Invisalign From When We All Fall Asleep. The music is intended to elicit a goose bump in the listener. Instead, the album opens with one of the most sly, most acid-tongued commentary on the transition from pre to post-superstardom since Serve The Servers served as the lead-in for Nirvanas In Utero in 1993.AdvertisementPop stars are often reluctant to confront the costs of fame directly in their music. They fear that they might lose the Im just like me accessibility that made them famous. Instead, they prefer to address issues of success indirectly or thematically. A lot of pop music that addresses the cost of fame, from Lady Gagas Paparazzi to the Eagles After The Thrill is Gone, was deliberately written to let listeners substitute their relationship woes for existential drama. The vagueness allows anyone to share their concerns. Ironically, this is why songs such as Serve The Servants feel so real and vital. The unvarnished reminders that the person has been through something different to you makes them more candid and honest than the superficially filtered alternatives.Serve the Servants do this in the most direct and meta way possible: Teenage angst paid off well / Now I'm bored and old," sings Kurt Cobain. These lyrics are the first to appear on the highly anticipated follow-up album to Nevermind. The self-appointed judges judge / more that they have sold. This was both a mockery of media critics of Nirvana as well as a humorous commentary on the strange fact that Cobain is world-famous because of his loud rock songs. Instead of trying to attract listeners with an inviting, let's get together and sing a song attitude; Cobain was essentially saying, "You have never experienced what we have, and you will never again. So fuck off, this is not fun."Happier Than Ever's opening track, Getting Older, follows in the footsteps of her first album. But it also calls out Cobain fans directly, rather than critics and media. Eilish seems to be going to deliver the same kind of honest, vulnerable confessional that made her vulnerable on her first album.Ironic because strangers seem to want my more than anyone else.The song turns the script of the traditional you, the fans keep me grounded approach on its head, changing it from a rant to a reprimand. It's sharp, caustic and playful at the same time. In other words, it is exactly what Eilish loves about her music. A smart and clever way to start off the first album after fame. She matches Cobain once again, but this time she is referring to the bored and old: Things I used to enjoy / keep me employed now.AdvertisementThis is a second act that has an amazing opening salvo. Time will tell, but Eilish is already one-step ahead of her debut.
