Tate McRae is a Canadian songwriter, singer and dancer who just released her third album at age 21. She first rose to fame after being a finalist on the show “So You Think You Can Dance” in 2016 before releasing her debut single “One Day” in 2017.
Released on Feb. 21, McRae’s newest album “So Close To What” is full of upbeat songs from start to finish that fit the stereotypical pop genre. The album contains 15 tracks and lasts around 42 minutes. I’ve never listened to much of Tate McRae’s music, but this album seemed very similar to the few songs I know. That being said, the album isn’t terrible, it just struck me as unremarkable and doesn’t really line up with my tastes in music.
To start the album, the song “Miss possessive” tells a story about jealousy and threats towards her relationship. It was one of the songs that stood out to me the most, simply because I liked the interesting sound of it. That being said, I didn’t understand much of what McRae was saying until I looked at the lyrics. Like most of her songs on “So Close To What,” “Miss possessive” was very airy and heavy on the autotune, making it hard to distinguish the individual words of the song unless I paid close attention. Although the song stood out to me compared to her other songs, it was not very memorable compared to other artist’s music.
Each song melts almost seamlessly into the next, making it hard to distinguish between the songs. Although that might be an interesting detail to help the album flow smoothly, it feels very repetitive. Each song is upbeat and high-pitched, and McRae doesn’t change her voice much throughout the album. She uses her signature breathy whisper and autotune for every song, so it gets old after the first couple of tracks. I think it would have added more character and variety to the album if she had a couple of slower, lower songs with less autotune.
Another song that caught my attention was “Purple lace bra,” which is the sixth track on the album. McRae takes on a more vulnerable perspective and shares her frustration of being sexualized and not taken seriously. She laments not being heard and feels she is only respected when she gives people what they want. She sings “I’m losing my mind, I’m losing my head, You only listen when I’m undressed.” During the chorus, she questions how she can have her voice heard, and how far she has to go to gain that bit of respect.
Out of the 15 tracks, two feature other artists. The song “bloodonmyhands” features rapper Flo Milli, and “I know love” features The Kid LAROI. I’d never listened to either of the featured artists, but I thought they both complemented McRae’s style and voice. My favorite of the two songs was “I know love” because McRae and The Kid LAROI harmonized, while the song with Flo Milli had both artists performing separately. McRae and LAROI naturally had some natural chemistry in their song and have been dating in real life for around a year. “I know love” explored the nature of relationships that can overwhelm you and become something more serious than you had intended.
Lastly, I would say my favorite song from “So Close To What” is the last song, “Nostalgia.” It is a raw and heartfelt song about life, regrets and mistakes. Though that might sound gloomy, I see it as a lesson to enjoy every day and take the opportunities you can before it’s too late. She sings “Lately, I wake up feeling like oh, Where does the time go? You never really know” to show her experience of how life flies by. It displays fear for the past and future, but not the present. Our lives will never be the same as they are in the moment, and “Nostalgia” reminds me of how fast it goes by.
Overall, “So Close To What” by Tate McRae is nothing outstanding or fresh, but I actually found that as I listened to the album more, it grew on me. When I really paid attention to the lyrics, I could hear her vulnerability and genuineness that was otherwise masked by autotune and upbeat background music. It is not an album I will be listening to much in the future, but I realized I like a few of her songs more than I expected. If you are someone who enjoys traditional pop music, or just Tate McRae in general, “So Close To What” is an album I would recommend checking out.
“So Close To What:” ★★★☆☆
