Photo of Mariel Loveland, a.k.a. Best Ex, by Alps Lifee
The idea of girlhood has been a hot topic as of late—a buzzword that brings up anger, frustration, and something that looks like joy. When moving through adulthood, that idea becomes more complicated when thinking about the expectations that society puts on girls to become a certain type of woman. Best Ex’s new album Good Girl addresses that reflection through honest lyricism and lighthearted instrumentation. As a whole, the pop punk alum explores gender roles, personal insecurity, and relationships through her sophomore studio album. She brings that residual alt-rock sentiment to her style of indie-pop.
“I want my childhood back,” are the first words of the album, in the first and titular track “Good Girl.” The light guitar strums and a calm drum beat of the verses allow for reflection on expectations of women in society, with lines like “I could take his name, or I could take my father’s,” leading to feelings captured in “Cautiously spinning out, paralyzed by my doubt.” The momentous beginning of the chorus, with a pause in singing married with a crashing of drums, brings attention to the words “I try to be a good girl when no one’s watching, fix my blonde curls, make it look easy. And I’ll never scream, I’ll just silently seethe, trying to get you to listen to me.” The upbeat nature of the instruments contrasts with the anger in the words, which adds to the boxed-in feeling Best Ex is expressing—probably told to sit still and smile her whole life, she breaks out and bites with calculated feeling.
Multiple tracks, like “Is This It?” and “Papercut” address similar social issues. Some lines are more direct in their satirical criticism: “It’s his world, I’m only living in it. Just a girl, you won’t let me forget. Fall in line while you cut in front” from “Papercut.” Other lyrics provide more story-building and emotional pulling: “I didn’t want to know where your bodies were buried. I’d lead them to it, but they’d never believe me” from “Man Like You.” Sprinkled throughout the LP are words telling you that what appears small can go deeper and hurt harder. When you’re growing from girlhood, you become more and more conditioned to the adversity, but the negative feelings don’t go away. They build and scar over.
Instrumentally, the album maintains an indie sound that calls back to the 1990s teen pop revival of bubblegum pop. These style choices pair with the tone of the work overall—a base of upbeat mainstream but with angsty elements factored in. The distorted vocals in “Boring” and “Parallel Lines,” for example, contrast with the simple singer-songwriter vocals in “Sick of Myself.”
Along with classic coming-of-age themes, like experiences in relationships and perseverance despite self-doubt, the social commentary on gender roles reminds us that, though we have come far, there’s more fighting to be done, as seen in Best Ex’s personal examples that are found throughout Good Girl. The artist asks herself how to reconcile with the constant pressure felt during that girlhood period, attempting to understand it now as a 30-something-year-old adult. The final line of “Good Girl” asks, “Can somebody please just listen to me?,” calling to those who feel the same way while calling out those who haven’t listened. | Krista Spies
Good Girl will be released on Friday, November 6 on Iodine Recordings. To preorder or pre-add to your favorite streaming service, click here.
