Album Review: HIT ME HARD AND SOFT - Billie Eilish

Three years after the release of her critically-acclaimed sophomore album Happier Than Ever and multiple Oscar-winning ballads, Billie Eilish faced a monster more terrifying than any of those she doodled in her famous teenage notebook — Writer’s Block. Her rise to stardom was a surge so sudden and seamless that some deemed it impossible to be anything other than an industry plant, and it eventually started to feel like swimming upstream for the alternative pop megastar. Billie isn’t afraid to share her fears that she could already be on her way out or that her 15 minutes of fame are up. Those same fears, and consistent collaboration with her musical mastermind brother FINNEAS, may have been exactly what pushed her to keep swimming and write her way out of a corner, culminating in Eilish’s third and most personal studio album yet, HIT ME HARD AND SOFT.

When Greta Gerwig set out to create her box office smash hit film Barbie, she did so with the intention of creating a genuine portrayal of the unique and singular experience of womanhood through one of the most nostalgic and feminist icons in American culture — the Barbie doll. Knowing that the film’s score had to capture and convey its seemingly simple yet devastatingly complex and relevant themes, she sought out Billie to contribute as one of the world’s most talented songwriters. “What Was I Made For?” resonated with so many people because it channeled womanhood in its most poignant and pure form, matching the film’s themes and tone perfectly. After the success of that track, Billie found herself struggling to create the same flowstate of productivity in the studio that she had with her two album releases prior. After countless attempts to capture that same lightning in a bottle feeling, she used the speak-from-the-heart approach that she did for Barbie to write the opening track “SKINNY” for HIT ME HARD AND SOFT.

The album’s stripped back ambient acoustic guitar and softly sung lyrical content help develop Billie’s new theme of opening albums with life updates; giving her listeners a snapshot of what has been on her mind since they heard from her last. “SKINNY” is an immediate tear-jerker that introduces the album’s narrative themes of loss, regret, new love, and self discovery. “LUNCH” is a perfect example of Eilish coming to terms with every aspect of herself — a no-holds-barred, innuendo-packed and lustful banger in every regard.

The following three tracks showcase FINNEAS’s ability to foster and hone in on Billie’s innate musical instincts. “CHIHIRO” may be a career highlight, with its crescendoing synths and guitars that build to the point of bliss. “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” is a beautiful ode to loyalty, commitment, and staying strong for others even when the going gets tough. “WILDFLOWER” also builds continually while outlining the messy and complicated intricacies of Eilish’s friendships and role helping navigating others’ failed relationships.

“THE GREATEST” and “L’AMOUR DE MA VIE” utilize similar songwriting structures by starting slowly and eventually exploding in their back halves. The first utilizes “Happier Than Ever”-like rock guitar instrumentation over some of Billie’s most ambitious vocal deliveries yet, and the second evolves into an 80’s synth-heavy bop so well-received by fans that Eilish released an extended cut of the track just days after the album’s release.

“THE DINER” and the first half of “BITTERSUITE” are where some of my criticisms of the album come to the forefront, unfortunately. The first reverts to the tonal aesthetics of her first album over what some are calling a “Luigi’s Mansion typebeat” — I love the internet sometimes — and while its perspective switch to the eyes of one of Eilish’s stalkers is a creative choice, its lack of sonic development makes it stand in the shadows of the tracks that come before it. The second is a narrative extension across songs, something Eilish does very well throughout this album, but its initially slow progression just fails to captivate me. That, of course, changes in the end when Eilish introduces the fan favorite and long-lost chord progressions of “True Blue”, an unreleased but idolized track from her early days of touring.

Now a combination of “True Blue” and “Born Blue”, “BLUE” is another album highlight, featuring self-referential songwriting that references every other song on the project. Its second half leaves things off on a more dark and mysterious note, setting Eilish up to take her musical career in any direction that feels natural to her and her brother.

While others have connected the dots on what fans are calling the ILOMILO theory, essentially that this project could be the first half of a potential double-album drop, I am completely content with HIT ME HARD AND SOFT being the product of Eilish’s hard work in escaping the beast of the void that is Writer’s Block. Of course I would be excited to hear more, as I love ambitious and fan-centric surprise artistry, but this is also more than enough for me. I thought there would be no better way to return to my blog after 5 months of inactivity than positively reviewing a genuine, incredibly-talented artist who learned how to swim upstream by creating lightning instead of catching it in a bottle. This is instantly a contender for album of the year, and I can’t wait to see where she goes next.

Favorite Tracks: “SKINNY” - “LUNCH” - “CHIHIRO” - “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” - “THE GREATEST - “L’AMOUR DE MA VIE” - “BLUE”

SCORE: 8.7/10