Modern love feels empty and insecure, and underscores wants to talk about it.
April Harper Grey, known in the music world as underscores, quickly climbed the hyperpop/indietronica ladder over the last couple of years thanks to the release of her breakout album, Wallsocket, in 2023. Since then, Grey has been releasing a series of collaborations with artists such as Danny Brown, Ninajirachi and kimj. On top of this, gearing up for this album cycle, she released three singles: “Music,” “Do It” and “Tell Me (U Want It).”
The album starts off strong with not only the third single release, but a passionate welcome back for her seasoned fans. It is also an incredible introduction to her music if this is your first time listening to her. “Tell Me (U Want It)” is a hopeful look at what’s ahead for this record, like we are about to embark on a journey with her. The brief jerks of Skrillex-like synths mixed with the ongoing twinkling pads complement the strong vocal melody delivered by Grey, a consistent strength throughout this album.
“Music” is easily the best song on the record. Although it was the first song released during this album cycle, it carries the most weight. Straight out the gate, the song is energetic and pulls multiple elements from various genres such as hyperpop and EDM, especially toward the end. And don’t even get me started on that drop, which receives a payoff of a “we don’t give a f–” sample. It feels like an homage to 2010s EDM in an LMFAO way.
“The Peace” sticks out compared to the rest of the album simply because most of the song takes an a cappella-based approach. It’s hard not to feel a little bit of an Imogen Heap-like sound to this, as of course, she is the queen of a good a cappella ballad. The lyricism stands out in this song: a desperate kind of need for attention reflects on Grey’s words, where clearly she’s more obsessed with them than they are with her, leaving her unable to move on. It’s pretty raw lyrically (which I can appreciate), and feels physically icy cold. This one clung to me more than I thought it initially would.
But no song was more surprising to me than “Innuendo (I Get U)”. This is the only new song on the record that I think could compare with the singles released. It’s so wobbly, so abrupt and so much fun. Grey flexes her lyricism muscle on this track, but also delivers consistent, melodic vocals that blend with the instrumental. The different vocal volumes — whispering in the chorus, louder toward the end — add such a chilled approach to electronic music, but then we get propelled into this trance-like space toward the end of the song that completely steps it up to another level.
“Do It” is the second single released for this cycle. This is when I noticed this album is going to be more of a pop-focused look. That said, it reminds me a lot of a modern-day K-Pop track because of its catchy rhythm. On top of this, it has its own choreography that Grey performs in her music video. The showstopper here is the thirty-two seconds of heaven that is sandwiched in between the last two choruses, the bridge. This song easily combines all of her strengths, making it a great representation of her music.
The last few new songs on this record, “Lovefield”, “Bodyfeeling” and “Wish U Well” all fall under a similar category: songs that weren’t very memorable. Listening to this record, it’s almost hard to distinguish them because they have this ongoing sound that connects them, and unfortunately, it didn’t connect with me. However, I can see a change in Grey’s musical approach when it comes to these three: more personal lyrics and intentional sound choices. These songs felt like an attempt at 2000s love-pop, yet they came off as weaker simply because of the other songs on this record.
Overall, while it’s obvious underscores is moving toward more of a pop sound, this album didn’t overly impress me, especially compared to her last record — although this is a tall order. It doesn’t make sense that Grey chose to release songs like Music and Do It, the two strongest songs on the record, when the rest of the album isn’t at the same level.
Lyrically, this album delivers on the concept: modern love can be isolating and feel impossible to achieve, making it feel like a liminal space in your life. These songs have those sounds nailed extremely well – I particularly find The Peace to do this.
Maybe because I anticipated a higher-energy, more electronic-based album, I was thrown off by the change in style. It’s a sound I — and her fanbase — know she can do so well. With that being said, I still appreciate seeing artists take creative risks for their career, and I don’t see how this is any different.
Grey has already won me over as a fan, so it’s more likely than not that I will be listening to multiple tracks on this album for months on end, even if it’s not my favorite record she’s made. I would consider this a “slump” in my eyes, but do not be fooled! I’ll be back for the next record with open arms and ears, eagerly waiting.
Marianne Akre can be reached at [email protected]
