bülow Continues Her Reign As Pop Royalty with 'Crystalline' EP
Known for her edgy lyrics and relentlessly catchy melodies, pop songstress bülow is digging even deeper into the young female experience with her Crystalline EP. On the cusp of a tour with Lauv and with over two million monthly listeners on Spotify alone, bülow has been riding the wave of her wildly successful projects Damaged Vol. 1 and Damaged Vol. 2. Her latest release is an electro-pop masterpiece, further establishing the rising singer as a force to be reckoned with.
Crystalline kicks off with bülow's previously released single "Sweet Little Lies," which is currently setting pretty at nearly four million streams on Spotify alone. Showcasing bülow's remarkable pop sensibilities, one listen to "Sweet Little Lies" will have you humming it for approximately three to five business days.
Next up is "Get Stüpid," an ode to messy nights spent partying. One of the more lighthearted songs on the EP, "Get Stüpid" lists off all the classic elements of a party that ends in eviction, from dropping phones in toilets to a random girl kissing a frat star in a bathtub. It has commercial appeal while retaining bülow's dark, occasionally indifferent energy. She sings,
"I wanna get stupid, I wanna get dumb. Lose my inhibitions, dizzy from the drugs."
The next track, "Word Smith," calls out smooth talkers everywhere, emphasizing that "it's not cute." With vocal delivery reminiscent of Julia Michaels, bülow has an affinity for blurring the lyrics to her verses while somehow making the result more sonically appealing by doing so.
"Back OFF" is an interlude that adds some darkness to the collection, sounding more like a horror movie soundtrack than part of a pop project. Reversed vocals and heavy breathing, followed by the metallic sound of a knife dragging offers a chilling addition to the EP.
"FINE" delves into the electro-pop grunginess that keeps bülow fans coming back. Oscillating between the top and bottom of her range, hard-hitting production gives the track grittiness to counter bülow's feathery vocals. "Euphoria" stretches the rhythmic ability of a single word, creatively using a handful of lyrics to make a danceable, anthemic song. bülow sings,
"You give me adrenaline, I give you dopamine. I should warn you, this euphoria don't last forever."
Finally, the collection finishes with "Wake Up," which comes to terms with a relationship that is no longer healthy. Working off themes of deception, facing reality and romantic friction, bülow closes the curtains to her latest project with distinctly relatable angst.
Check out the singer on tour with Lauv and give Crystalline a listen or five.
