Remi Wolf's latest album Mud is a lot of things. It's a breakup album, a sonic rollercoaster and an overall headscratcher.
If you're unfamiliar, Remi Wolf's last album, Big Ideas, was a critical and commercial success. It introduced a lot of listeners to Wolf's raunchy, genre-fluid sound and her 'don't give a two hoots' attitude.
Now we've got the follow up, Mud. Musically, the songs on here are incredibly well produced, and when Wolf reaches deep inside she brings out some incredible vocal performances.
Sometimes though, the breakup part of the album gets to be too much. This doesn't make it a bad record, but it could get to be too frenetic as Wolf worked through what she was feeling. Then, right when you think you're in a place of sonic and emotional resolution the album pulls the rug out from under you. This can be great for emotional effect, but it played out as hard genre switches from song to song, and it left me unsettled. Maybe that's the goal, but in this case I wanted a bit of distance.
The album is also full of songs about being drunk, partying, missing the person you broke up with, all the pills you're on, etc. It's so full of material that has been covered by other musicians over and over again that sometime it feels stale. And there are times where it would be nice if she let us imagine more.
There's a lot of experimentation with country music here too, which is fun to hear. At times I even thought I was listening to Kacey Musgraves! I could see some of these songs opening the doors to a whole new fanbase for Wolf.
"Burn Me Blue" sounds tailor-made for country pop radio. This is a mega sing-along epic chorus, and Wolf keeps the melodramatics largely in check. This could be a mega-hit if her fans are willing to embrace the slight sound change.
"Jaime" falls into '70s sexy soul music. It sounds a little like Curtis Mayfield, which puts it a little out of place following "Burn Me Blue," but if you've liked previous Wolf records you'll probably like this track. Wolf knocks it out of the park vocally, but it suffers a bit from hard-to-thread lyrics.
Now, we have to talk about "Moon So High." We've got a John Mayer collab on this song, and it perfectly blends Mayer's vibe with Wolf's more nuanced approach. Their pairing makes it one of the more enjoyable tracks on the record.
Does the Mayer solo seem a little heavy handed and slightly out of place with the tone of the record? Maybe. But hey, I liked it. Let's get some more Mayer/Wolf collabs, maybe even at The Sphere during Mayer's residency!
"I Won't Cry" is Mud's peak, and is my favorite track on the album. It's a real breakup song, complete with genuine feeling. It's what you feel right after the relationship's gone sour — you get in your car and you just start bawling. It's also a little reminiscent of Bonnie Raitt mixed with Dijon. I never thought I would feel that pairing, but it works really well. The entire song's a testament to Wolf's songwriting skills.
As a whole, Mud hits a lot of different notes and it's a bit messy. But that's life, right? If Wolf was setting out to make a "being real" record, she achieved it — for the most part. Go and experience it for yourself.