Guts: Track-By-Track ANALYSIS

Posted 07.10.2023

"I'm pretty when I cry"

The track starts out sounding like the average acoustic guitar pop song, leading listeners to believe Rodrigo's sophomore album is more partial to the pop genre, as everyone expected her to venture into and become the next big pop girl. However, the track gradually shifts after the halfway mark into something more. It transforms into a punky, screamy riot grrrl track filled with prominent drums, guitar riffs and beautiful lyricism about not fitting into western culture but trying to do so anyway. It sets the tone for the album with a perfect blend of pop and pop-punk elements. 

Posted 08.10.2023

"yes, I know that he's my ex, but can't two people reconnect?"

The second song off the record (directly transitioning from track 1), leans into a more early 2000s sound, becoming one of her most experimental singles to date. It's a silly song about going back to your ex when you know it's bad, but you're doing it anyway. The accompanying music video stars Olivia's friends with a 2000s-esqe teen movie vibe. Production wise the layered vocals in the chorus & the bass stand out to me the most. The bass remains constant for basically the whole song which provides some stability and implements  a constant groove throughout the track. It really stands out in the pre-chorus where it's the only instrument underneath the vocals, making it sound louder when nothing has been done to the actual volume of it. The layered vocals come in in the pre-chorus at the second "seeing you tonight, it's a bad idea right?" almost as if they're Olivia's friends trying to convince her not to go. Then, the "f*ck it, it's fine" lyric is just her on her own as the full production comes back in for the chorus, showing it's her own thought right before everything lets loose.

Posted 10.10.2023

"I used to think I was smart, but you made me look so naïve"

Starting out as a soft piano ballad, the first single highlights a big issue in the music industry where older/middle-aged men date women significantly lower in age compared to themselves. It’s disgusting. They take advantage of these young girls and capitalize on their popularity before leaving them with regret & devastating heartbreak. The song marked Olivia’s return to music after her debut album in 2021 as well as her sold out ‘Sour Tour’ in 2022. It starts out as a soft piano pop song with gorgeous vocals but then shifts at the bridge into this full-on pop song with rock influences, portraying the shift in these relationships beautifully.

Posted 11.10.2023

"Well, aren’t you the greatest thing to ever exist?"

Olivia's gorgeous songwriting is on clear display for this beautiful guitar ballad with perfectly layered vocals. The song's focus on jealousy of another girl, whether it be romantic, platonic or hatred, explicitly shows the dangers of seeing someone so put together and organised when you’re not. The spiraling jealousy portrays every teenage girl’s internal imperfections over a simple guitar track with layered vocals and the occasional drum beat.

Posted 12.10.2023

"Feels like my skin doesn't fit right over my bones so I guess I should go"

Based on the title, one would expect a soft piano track and lyrics about missing out, but it's the opposite and it’s amazing. The first full on indie-rock track of the record starts out with strong guitar chords & lively drums under weirdly accurate, relatable lyrics. Shouty but melodic lyrics perfectly capture every experience of a teenage girl into one catchy chorus.

The bridge/refrain is stripped back just Olivia’s pre-chorus vocals over a slow-tempo guitar of the same melody before the drums kick back in over the two bars leading up to a longer, more sustained note that leads back into the song at its fullest with the entire band to finish. In my eyes, ending the track with an ad lib of Olivia scoffing is the only way to go. It highlights the whole concept of the song that teenage girls are always self-conscious and never happy with what they do.

Posted 13.10.2023

"I'm so tired of bein' the girl that I am"

Track 6 is the new people pleaser anthem. It beautifully portrays the pressure teenage girls can put on themselves, even when they're told they don't need to be. Basing the song around the metaphor "You made the bed, now you have to lie in it" shows the growth due to the fact that we (the listeners) are slowly accepting that - but it doesn’t mean that we have to be happy about it. Personally, I think that it can also apply to always working towards things, never living for yourself and kicking yourself, regretting it now but acknowledging that too. Feeling like you ruin everything and never feel good enough or feel like you don't have a right to be happy, ignoring your surroundings for self-preservation and (in doing so) never feeling good about the accomplishments you work so hard for & feeling like no-one ever knows the real you.

It feels like you’re digging yourself in a hole too deep and having to climb out on your own because in the end, it's you and only you who can do the hard part and start doing better. Feeling better. About yourself or your situation. 

The minimal production only emphasises the message of the song, clearly showcasing Rodrigo’s ability to appear so vulnerable whilst remaining appearances of being untouchable.

Posted 13.10.2023

"Love is never logical"

Olivia follows up one of her most vulnerable songs with an absolutely heartbreaking one, focusing on how falling fast and ignoring all the red flags can come back to bite you. In her case, it’s when he turned out to be a manipulative asshole, making her feel stupid and messed up, even though it was all his fault. It’s a soft piano ballad with added guitar with only one main vocal track, this limited production helps highlight the seriousness of the song. However, layered backing vocals after the bridge & taking out instrumentation emphasise the message of this hopelessly beautiful song.

Posted 14.10.2023

"I wanna kiss his face with an uppercut"

This track portrays the two sides of Olivia’s music. We go from 2 emotionally vulnerable tracks in a row to this fun indie-rock track with humorous lyricism paired with layered vocals in chorus that create a choir-esque effect.

Production in the bridge is pulled back with just electric guitar and vocals that slowly build up with backing vocals getting gradually louder, resulting in the main vocals also growing before the drums join in. Just when you think things will go back to normal, they don't. Another chorus starts off with just a choir-esque layered vocal and an acoustic guitar before introducing all instruments again. This then means that the main vocals don't come back in again and the song ends with random ad libs of a conversation about the topic of the song first woven in as ad-libs in the last chorus.

When you first hear the song title (and maybe even at first listen), it sounds like it's about wanting to get back together with an ex similar to 'bad idea right?' but when listening, you realise it's a revenge song, about wanting to get back at him for ruining your life by doing the same.

Posted 15.10.2023

"I give up everything, I placed my bets and it's not worth anything"

My favourite song on the album is the unapologetic anthem that the second half of the album needs. The shouty-melodic bridge (almost mocking) reminds me of ‘disaster’ by Conan Gray, it’s fun & poppy, focusing on a topic that’s usually associated with failure. You’d expect it to be another ballad because of this, except with its funky drums & guitar riffs, it’s just a good pop rock song - it’s a fun song about accepting failures without feeling bad about them.

Posted 16.10.2023

"It takes strength to forgive, but I don't feel strong"

This heart-wrenching song about not letting go of some feelings, even though it's a little wrong, hits hard for many. The piano ballad portrays how putting on a facade doesn’t feel good but it's sometimes necessary, linking back heavily to ‘making the bed’. It starts off as a soft piano ballad & slowly builds as the song progresses. The production reaches a high in the bridge with floaty instrumentation and powerful, guttural vocals before ending on a soft tone with stripped back production once again, very reminiscent of Rodrigo’s debut single ‘drivers license’.

In the end it shows that acknowledging you’re getting there and making progress but knowing things aren’t going to go back to normal can be just as healing.

Posted 17.10.2023

"You just feel like shit over and over again"

This slow but upbeat indie-pop song with rock elements is a perfect mix of all elements of the record. The slow guitar at the forefront is reminiscent of 'jealousy jealousy' with similar themes too focusing on growing up and realising that adulting isn't all it's cracked up to be & slowly noticing the things that don’t feel right. Coming to hate all of the things you onced loved is a rite of passage for women, especially when we never escape criticism. That constant external criticism reflects back into our mindsets and we have to learn how to change and adapt to life when we never not feel enough & never feel happy with ourselves. Even though this song has a simple ballad-like melody that remains constant throughout the track, Rodrigo's vocals are the element that shape the song & its raw emotions. Her vocal shift into a falsetto in the chorus at times pinpoint the moment girls can come close to breaking down. Oliva also doesn't try to hide anything, sticking to clear & concise lyrics with little room for multiple interpretations, she tells it how it is and wants people to hear that.

Posted 018.10.2023

"they all say that it gets better, it gets better, but what if I don't?"

Track 12 acts as the perfect album closer. A slow ballad about self-doubt & facing the fact that life isn't perfect and experiences aren't always good and you let people down, similarly to pretty isn't pretty. Similarly to ‘hope ur okay’, the album ends with a semi-distorted voice clip of Dan and Olivia, bringing back the idea of going in a full circle since the last album.

The mostly-slow piano ballad sets the serious, reflective tone, but it then transforms with a layered bridge made up of floaty vocals that gradually get louder, portraying the insecurities that Olivia feels & how they get bigger and bigger over time. They then drop into a full band, coming up as a crescendo into the final parts of the song. It acts as almost a full-on breakdown (in music & otherwise) with the vocals getting shoutier as the last chorus progresses to the end. Just as the track comes to an end the full production is drawn back with just piano and guitar on the same melody line remaining. 

This fluctuation across the track shows how life can go up and down and you can feel like life is being sucked out of you but still want things to get better whilst thinking you aren't going to make it. The closing track of her debut album told a story of her checking on others around her but this one tells us that maybe she’s the one that needs checking up on.