As of: May 4, 2024 12:00 a.m
British singer Dua Lipa’s new album is here. It’s called “Radical Optimism” – radical optimism. On guitar: Kevin Parker from the band Tame Impala. Does the album keep what the title promises?
Two weeks ago, superstar Taylor Swift released her new album. Swift was so omnipresent in the media worldwide that one could get the impression that there were no other stars in pop at the moment. But of course there are. Dua Lipa for example. The Brit with Albanian roots has already won three Grammys and is at least as well-known in the kingdom as Swift. Her last album also landed in the top 10 of the charts in Germany. Now the new album is here.
Collaboration with Kevin Parker from the band Tame Impala
It begins with the end: “End Of An Era”, the end of an era, is the name of the first song on “Radical Optimism”, Dua Lipa’s new third album. But is this really the end of an era for the British woman? Is a new one beginning? Not really in terms of sound. The disco beats are still there, the airy guitars are perhaps new. Kevin Parker plays her. He produced this album, among other things. He plays psychedelic indie rock with his band Tame Impala.
Dua Lipa told Apple Music that Tame Impala’s music has always blown her mind. She wrote down her desire to work with Parker in her notebook years ago. Dua Lipa is an advocate of manifesting. The 28-year-old believes that things happen if you believe hard enough. Of course, she doesn’t say that things happen because a multi-millionaire has the means to make them happen.
“Radical Optimism”: Simple messages without a second level
But manifesting fits well with the album’s idea of being radically optimistic. Being radically optimistic means not letting yourself down, wanting to grow and develop, says Dua Lipa on Apple Music. The messages she proclaims are very simple, unfortunately usually without a second level. “I’m happy for you,” says one of the bombastic ballads and continues: “Even the hard times had something good.”
Not everything is as bad as this calendar saying prose. In the song “Training Season” you can feel a groove that is reminiscent of flamenco and also sounds like disco. Dua Lipa sings about the perfect partner with whom she wants to have intensive conversations. In the music video she sits in a café, gaping men press her body against the window. Dua Lipa skillfully ignores her. There’s a message here: looks can also be sexist. More of these moments would have benefited the album.
Blockbuster pop in the medium temperature range
So “Radical Optimism” is well-crafted blockbuster pop in the mid-range. Radically optimistic? Gladly. Radically new and bold? Rather not. Dua Lipa rarely leaves her comfort zone. You can’t get close to it, the songs seem thrown together. Perhaps she can be credited with upholding universal values. In relationships, because relationships are what this is all about, what counts for them is honesty, reliability and love. Nobody has anything against that. But other pop albums have already told the story better.
Radical Optimism
Label:Urban Release date: May 3, 2024 Price:17.99 euros €
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NDR Culture | Information program | May 3, 2024 | 5:55 p.m