NINA BANKS
managing editor
nina.banks@my.tccd.edu
Troye Sivan has graced the world with his angelic vocals and gender-bending good looks in his third studio album “Something to Give Each Other.”
My introduction to Sivan came in 2018 with his song “Dance To This” featuring Ariana Grande. Prior to the song, I was vaguely aware Sivan was an artist, but I mainly knew him from when he was a YouTuber in the early 2010s.
Since then, I’ve heard songs here and there. But when “Rush” was released, I immediately tuned into Sivan’s new album and was pleasantly surprised. Ten tracks, 32 minutes and definitely no skips.
Sivan took inspiration from a breakup in 2019. The titles alone convey the lovesick feel of the songs without even listening.
The album is primarily pop and rotates through its various subgenres, from dance to synth. Sivan also explores some contemporary R&B. I typically fancy myself as an R&B gal, but I still enjoyed the different pop genres.
My favorite song from the album is “One Of Your Girls.” Clips of the music video recently went viral on TikTok of Sivan in drag while giving heartthrob Ross Lynch a lap dance.
And like so many others, I can appreciate beautiful people. But, there is so much more to be enjoyed about the music videos besides the godlike beauty of the two.
The music video starts black and white and Sivan presenting as a man. 50 seconds in, the video becomes saturated with color and Sivan is in drag. The song is about Sivan’s relationships with men questioning their sexuality, hence the title and Troye presenting feminine.
There is so much about this song and music video that is brilliant. Intentional or not, I enjoyed the 2000s inspiration for the video. The overall vibe of the music video felt very nostalgic to the music videos I watched from the early 2000s. The white background, rhinestone jewelry and elevated Y2K style, it was practically a Gwen Stefani music video.
Sivan in drag was such a brilliant stylistic choice and made such perfect sense with the lyrics. And when you look as good as Sivan presenting either gender, who can complain?
A close second to “One of Your Girls” is “In My Room.” I suppose anytime a song is named “In My Room” it never fails to disappoint. The song features Spanish singer-songwriter Guitarricadelafuente. In an Instagram post, Sivan said the song feels like he’s a teenager “kicking my feet on my bed using Tumblr on my first MacBook.” I couldn’t describe it better if I tried.
The drums are reminiscent of lo-fi and 2019 indie music, dreamy and soft. Their vocals compliment on another as Sivan sings in English and Guitarricadelafuente sings in Spanish.
“Got Me Started” would probably be jarring to anyone in the meme scene during 2018. The start of the song is sampled from the Bag Raider’s “Shooting Stars.” While I never thought the original song was catchy besides the meme, Sivan pulls it off somehow and turns the sample into a beat that works well with the rest of the song.
My only qualm with the album is that the songs occasionally run together. The vocal mixing in each song is similar to one another in most songs with some exceptions. While I did enjoy the album, it is not my usual genre I reach for or sound like albums I listen to. That being said, I enjoyed the experience Sivan gave me and other listeners and can appreciate how this genre is compelling to so many.
Sivan’s album is a work of aesthetically pleasing art. I will be rushing to the presale line to get his tickets.
