Zara Larsson Aims For Pop Greatness on “Midnight Sun”
Design by Anna Brody
By Bennett Himmel
Zara Larsson’s newest album is inane, for better or for worse.
Is it mean to say that up until this year, I’d never really had a conscious thought about Swedish pop phenom Zara Larsson? Of course, I’ve been somewhat familiar with her work; she’s been inconspicuously successful, racking up millions of streams, with her debut album So Good ranking in the top 200 most streamed albums of all time. She has some smash hits- her debut single “Lush Life” was a serious contender for 2015’s song of the summer. Her real huge hit, “Never Forget You” was catchy, but had the same problem as the rest of Zara’s work: a lack of personality. She’s never struck me as a superstar, anything more than a girl with a great voice. But with the lead single and title track to her newest album, Midnight Sun, Zara hit something new, something…interesting. Over twinkling synths, pounding jersey club beats, and Ray Of Light-era sub bass, Zara holds notes for over ten seconds with perfect vibrato, invoking endless summer nights and stadium-sized romance in a way unheard of since Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream”. On the album, Zara seeks to elevate her music by reaching towards the trashy, glitzy, and humid, and has some huge hits and huge misses.
Larsson has been building an immense amount of hype for this project based on sheer charm, personality, and superhotgirlness. I see clips from the campy, Lisa Frank-inspired video for the title track all over Twitter; I see her perfectly hit a split to a cover of “Gimme More” while opening for everyone’s favorite pop star desperately in need of a neti pot, Tate McRae; I see her mischievous charm on TikTok, jokingly pushing back at snarky gayboy critics (notice me Zara). But this trademark charm can not be found in spades on Midnight Sun. The should-I-fuck-my-friend’s-ex anthem “Girl’s Girl” has a catchy hook, sure, but the production plods along with very little tension and release, and the lyric “I should be cautious, but I’m playing with fire instead” made my eyes roll faaarrrrrr back into my head. Single, “Crush,” is even duller, with its textbook 2010s EDM drop and not a drop of personality to be found lyrically–it’s tale of unrequited love through charmingly simple wordplay could feel smart, but Larsson explains it as if we’re stupid: “Oh, baby, I’m crushed / It will never be us / That’s why they call it a crush.” We got it, girl, we got it.
Some of you may say, “But Bennett! Midnight Sun is not aiming to be a serious piece of art pop, it’s just a slice of dance-pop for the girlies! You hate fun!!” But the thing is, when Larsson lets loose on the real bangers here, it’s transcendent. Lead single “Pretty Ugly” is potentially the most obnoxious song I’ve ever heard, and I’m fucking obseessseddd with it. The song immediately enters the canon of startlingly loud pop bangers, with Zara chanting “HAVE YOU EVER SEEN A PRETTY GIRL GET UG-LY LIKE THIS?!!! / NAS-TEE LIKE THIS?!?!? / LOSING HER SHITTT!” The song is a bracing, clanging, demonic pop maelstrom fit for a psycho cheerleader routine. You have no choice but to love it. The should-be single “Hot & Sexy” is similarly brilliant, with an XCXian breakdown in the song’s final leg, and a brilliant Tiffany “New York” Pollard sample. I look forward to hearing it during sloppy drunk nights at Legacy, which is exactly what good, simple, pop music should make you do. The issue with Midnight Sun is that you can’t help but feel like the concept of “What if you made Zara Larsson fierce” was thought up before any of the songs were made. Don’t get me wrong, it’s by far Zara’s best work, and a pop album that will no doubt do numbers with circuit gays, but it’s missing a certain edge. Its camp does not look you right in the eye, it fearfully winks. Part of the issue is timing; this album practically begs to be released during Pride Month, but perhaps this was intentional. The core statement of the album is the pre-chorus to the title track: “Summer isn’t over yet.” All over Midnight Sun, Larsson seeks to evoke ravey, European summer euphoria, and when she gets it right, she really gets it right. But there’s fear all over this album. And we can all sense it. Zara is an incredibly talented performer and vocalist; her dance moves executed perfectly, her notes perfectly supported, but the best moments on this album are when she gets messy. If Zara leans into the trashiness on the next album, she’ll soar.