Pylon is Fillipino/British singer songwriter beabadoobee's fourth studio album, and in a world dominated by the likes of Olivia Rodrigo, Phoebe Bridgers, Clairo and more who are all making melancholy pop, Pylon stands out.
With guest spots from Hayley Williams (of Paramore) and Brendan Yates (of Turnstile) it's clear that beabadoobee isn't fooling around with this record.
Pylon rocks harder than previous beabadoobee releases, but that's not to say that it will turn off fans who are used to her established sound. bea knows her audience, and she's inviting them to go on a deep journey on this record. You'll be rewarded with some weird sonic sounds and harder vocals if you do. Will everyone go on the journey with her? That's unclear, but I bet she'll gain some new fans along the way.
If you caught beabadoobee at Hinterland then you, like me, probably noticed that she'd turned up the volume on her new songs and was overall rocking harder. It had me wondering if she was taking a bit of a nod from Turnstile even. And this could be a bias on my part, but where Pylon shines strongest for me is "Powerlines," which features Yates. It's a moody track that evolves into a crunchy, fuzzed out guitar-heavy jam with Bea pleading about how she "misses you" and then Yates comes in with "how powerlines make me feel close to you."
The back and forth between the two vocalists is superb, and is one of my favorite duets this year. The song's an album highlight, and it's an overall fantastic collaboration.
The lyrics on Pylon occasionally drift into pouty/sad-girl-hanging-out-at-the-mall vibes (you'll really feel it on "Estranged" and "Write Me a Letter"), but the instrumentation keeps the songs driving, so they don't become unwanted melodrama. And in truth, this record could be the catalyst for a lot of young girls to pick up the guitar, much like Olivia Rodrigo has been doing lately.
"In Motion" finds beabadoobee's vocals entering territory more populated by bands like L7 and Hole. This track stood out to me for good reason. It's a complex song, starting soft and unassuming before the pummeling chorus comes in, which, juxtaposed with bea's soft and delicate delivery on the verses tears you apart. It ends with a beautiful piano arrangement, but intentionally stumbles with some audio glitches, leaving you unsteady and unsettled. The emotion in this song is raw and in your face. It's the real deal, and I would love to hear bea do this more often.
If harder vocal delivery is not to your liking, you don't have to wait very long. The next track, "Memories," is arguably the most friendly piece of sugar-coated pop on the album in a very good way. This is a very pretty song, and could easily soundtrack the end of your senior year summer vacation perfectly. Hidden in the sugar pop is melancholy, but if you're not paying attention you could miss that, and instead just enjoy a beautiful piece of pop songwriting.
Pylon is a good record, and it does something that's crucial to any musician's evolution. It challenges their core fans but keeps them along for the journey. In beebadoobee's case, this album succeeds. Not only that, but this album has the potential to introduce her fans to her recent influences. And hey, if Pylon can get a kid to put their phone down and pick up a guitar, even more power to it.