Avril Lavigne’s sixth studio album “Head Above Water” is a collection of songs celebrating her resilience, happiness and willingness to rise above the negativity that comes her way.
A lot of people think of darkness and pain when it comes to personal albums, but “Head Above Water” is different. “Head Above Water” is a beautifully personal album because of how honest and open it is. Avril uses and exposes all the beauty and happiness in her life to create a strong, celebratory work of powerful pop tracks.
The album kicks off on the right note with the song “Head Above Water” really setting the tone for what is to come on Avril’s latest musical venture. This song is Avril Lavigne taking her struggles that she has overcome, and putting that emotion into a lush ballad accompanied by triumphant piano chords and violins. Avril’s voice explodes magnificently with the backing band, proving an example of Avril as a powerhouse vocalist.
“Birdie” is an uplifting super-catchy pop track with Avril singing about overcoming struggle. The track flows perfectly into the beautiful power ballad “I Fell in Love with the Devil.” “Tell Me It’s Over” takes the listener to a ‘50s diner date over milkshakes with its cute pop beat and accompanying lyrics.
“Dumb Blonde” is Avril’s latest single off the album featuring Nicki Minaj that sounds like it could be the younger cousin of Gwen Stefani’s “Hollaback Girl.” This track transports the listener to a specific time of Limewire downloads and glittery flash images as Avril chants about being more than the airhead stereotype associated with blondes. This fun, cheerleader-esque bubblegum pop track stands out in Avril’s catalog as somewhat of a continuation on her “Girlfriend” track. “Dumb Blonde” is Avril’s way of standing up to her doubters and saying that she can be both feminine and an intellectual.
“It Was In Me” is another great, powerful and uplifting pop track that fits the overall themes of the album. The only issue is that it sounds odd coming directly after “Dumb Blonde.” It sounds a bit off to go from the most upbeat song on the album to another downbeat, piano-guitar pop ballad.
The listener is introduced to a more intimate side of Avril with the guitar-laced pop track “Souvenir.” Avril sings about wishing she could frame a moment and keep it forever as a souvenir. This is such a good pop track that shows how Avril is still able to relate to the general public with her singing through her insecurities. “Souvenir” perfectly packages the emotions associated with being afraid that a relationship’s good times will come to a close.
“Crush” features Avril as a hopeless romantic who is confessing how important her partner is to her. This pop track is Avril at her most romantic and in love as she begs to not be crushed while in such a vulnerable state. The lush instrumentals that appear across the album again make an appearance on “Crush” with a luxe backing band perfectly complimenting Avril’s lyrics.
One of the most creative songs to come out of Avril Lavigne is “Goddess,” which starts as a basic downtempo guitar track but soon kicks in with quirky lyrics rhyming pajamas and bananas. This is another example of Avril using her love and happiness to create a track that fully pulls out her most romantic emotions. “Goddess” is a celebratory track about the love Avril receives and about how her partner loves her through thick and thin.
“Bigger Wow” is a bop and another upbeat, catchy pop song that sounds like it was cut for top 40 radio. This is similar to “Love Me Insane,” which fits all the album’s recurring themes into a catchy pop track. These two tracks fit perfectly next to each other with their upbeat, catchy pop vibes.
“Warrior” closes out Avril Lavigne’s “Head Out of Water” album as the perfect concluding statement with its triumphant beat and lyrics about achieving victory. “Warrior” is Avril using her hurt to build an uplifting track for fans of her work. This track really feels like the classic Avril Lavigne everyone fell in love with. She is her own person and she will be happy living that, which is perfectly said on “Warrior.”
“Head Above Water” is Avril Lavigne taking all the positivity that has come her way to uplift her fans and those who crave resilient pop jams. Avril Lavigne’s sixth studio album proves that a personal, emotional album can also be a celebration of the good things that come in life.
