Miley Cyrus - Younger Now

Miley Cyrus
Younger Now
2017
Spotify

For about five years it seemed like Miley Cyrus was thoroughly entrenched in popular culture. Her molly poppin youthful explosion coincided with a  lot of pop female princesses, but underneath it all Miley had some actual chops. Younger Now is a shit into a new age for Miley and the songs have become more personal and connected to an elevated sense of self. She feels comfortable in this new lane, and actually sings better than she has in years, but basic production and being just out of touch with what pop is doing right now really lets the album down. The need for Younger Now in Miley's life is pretty clear, and the sentiments behind it are right on the surface: she's grown the fuck up. However that doesn't mean sanding off every edge and becoming a kids star again, which is what this record feels like. "Rainbowland" sung with Dolly Parton has a clearly staged "phone call" from Dolly to open it, then goes into a song about Rainbowland which may or may not be related to the rainbow land from the Zach Galifianakis and Will Ferrell movie "The Campaign". Zach's "rainbow land" was misconstrued by Ferrell and by the press in the film as a communist utopia and hence not for us proud Americans. This song however is basic, I mean fucking basic and the worst part about it is there is no humor behind it, there is no "isn't this silly?" what so ever. "Week Without You" also recycles a tired almost doo-wopp sound but she doesn't dive in, just sort of dips her toe in the water and hopes for the best.

Her singing deserves better, and really this album deserved better than this. She absolutely sings her fucking heart out on "Miss You So Much" but the songs is just some pop-country adjacent snoozer. Miley has often been accused of only glancing the surface of her subject matter, and in that vein it seems like she works more like a mirror reflecting to you the things she sees in the world. In the end however it is just a reflection rather than the real thing and that is where Younger Now fails. She could have dug in on something, made a powerful choice but she didn't, she played it very safe. There was no way she could re-do the Miley from Bangerz and Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz who was totally self-indulgent and wild, it just wouldn't work in 2017, but this record certainly is not the answer either. In recent interviews Cyrus has tried to distance herself from her overly sexualized past, which has been met with more than a few eye-rolls. Instead of condemning your past or trying to rationalize, realize it is simply a part of who you are, something to reflect on and use as fuel for your continued development. Miley tries to run from her past and in doing so makes it look all the worse and more and more like a cash grab.

4.0 out of 10