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Photo by Paige Strabala

Take a trip through the epic highs and devastating lows of love with EMELINE’s debut album, EMOTIONAL VIRGIN.

The album is a stunning collection of pop songs that are by turns full of brash bravado and earnest declarations of love, with production styles that move from early Lady Gaga to EMOTION-era Carly Rae Jepsen with ease. 

Tracks like “PORN STAR” and “heartbreak 65” see EMELINE dealing with partners who have gotten off on her sadness, eyerolling on the former, “Turned on by my broken heart // if that’s what gets you off, than maybe I’m a porn star.”

The singer’s sense of humor continues to bleed through the album; standout “CHOOSE UR FIGHTER” sees EMELINE singing, “Some of my exes are ugly // some of my exes are vain…some of my exes are no one // some of my exes have fame” over a video-game-inspired track that hammers home the message of “choosing your fighter” wisely. 

That delightful braggadocio continues in “FAMOUS,” a 00s grungy pop track where EMELINE tells a potential partner “one day, you’ll be a page in my biography,” adding, “We should fuck before I’m famous.”

That breezy confidence is used in an unexpected way on “Your Friends Like Me Better,” an acoustic song with lyrics that detail a romantic relationship that ended, but led to even stronger friendships. 

“I fell in love back when we were together // it wasn’t with you, but I know it’s forever,” EMELINE sings, landing on the sweetly evil line, “It’s not my fault that your friends like me better.”

While EMELINE shines in these bursting-with-confidence tracks, she’s equally adept at handling emotions that she can’t shrug off with a joke. 

In single “Against The Gates,” a song that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Carly Rae Jepsen project, the artist delivers an enthusiastic ode to her partner, lyrics dripping with religious imagery. 

“Push me up against the gates of heaven,” EMELINE croons. “If we go to hell, at least we’ll be together.”

The album’s title track, “Emotional Virgin,” is just as vulnerable, but with EMELINE’s sense of humor mixed in — ”Isn’t it hot to say it loud?” she winks at her lover, referring to the closeness emotionally intimacy can bring. 

Listen to EMOTIONAL VIRGIN below: