King Princess: ‘Hold On Baby’ Review
8.0
GENRE: Rock/Pop
YEAR OF RELEASE: 2022When King Princess went viral with “1950” in 2018, they didn’t mince her words from the go: her debut single was explicitly about queer love (“I hate it when dudes try to chase me, but I love it when you try to save me”). For a lot of 19-year-old artists, this could prematurely label their careers. But for King Princess, whose real name is Mikaela Straus, talking openly about her sexual orientation was just a tiny part of the artist she was destined to be. When she released her major debut studio album, Cheap Queen, in 2019, it appeared she had cracked the code and found the right formula for her career. The album presented some thematic inconsistencies—at times, she was a fearless queen who exuded confidence, and some songs later, she showed a new-to-this-sort-of-thing kind of energy—but its stylistic choices were still thought-provoking. She wanted to live as a pop star but sought to protect herself from the consequences, and if she could make grown men cry, she would be able to hide her fears. In that sense, Cheap Queen worked as the perfect armor.
On their new album, Hold On Baby, the singer faces all her contradictions. Straus’ poetic persona is more grounded, but she’s now pushing her usual in-depth relationship discussions a bit further: most of the songs on the record leave room for interpretation on whether she’s talking to a lover or herself. On opening “I Hate Myself, I Wanna Party,” which was co-produced by The National's Aaron Dessner (Taylor Swift), she wisely takes accountability for her momentary miseries and realizes that the first step to adulthood is acquitting others of your own crimes. “And only I can bring me down and keep me stuck at home,” she concedes with soft vocals while sinister instrumentals burn slowly. The track has the characteristic elements of an Aaron Dessner production, including the harmonic loops and the dampened upright piano. Halfway through the song, however, Straus escapes the enchantment of Dessner’s Long Pond Studio that sweetens the delivery of all his collaborators; her voice starts to soar on top of a wilder, louder production, now belting out the lyrics she earlier cooed.
Even the heartbreak songs on Hold On Baby seem to have a double meaning. “It’s a curse to be your friend,” she sings on the grunge-influenced “Cursed,” which at first seems like a jab aimed at someone else but can be interpreted differently with additional listens. “I miss you more the more I grow,” she sings, revealing the internal struggles of a young artist maturing in the public eye. When she sings about her long-time relationship on “Winter is Hopeful,” a quick-witted love letter to her girlfriend, she’s all tease and charm: “I hate you when you’re home, hmm, said it wrong/I just love you more when you’re gone.” It’s hard to believe that the artist made a preposterously radio-friendly album out of a pile of self-pity and apologies. “Loving me takes patience,” she admits on the homies-dedicated “For My Friends.” Her friends are a recurring theme on the album, and she recognizes that they are essential pieces in her journey of self-awareness on “Crowbar,” another Dessner-produced song. Yes, the haunting piano is present on this one, too.
Sometimes, the biggest forms of rebellion in the music industry are the intricate, slightest details that make real music real art. In this sense (and in many others), only King Princess could do King Princess. She ends the album with “Let Us Die,” an explosive indie-rock/pop song with drums skillfully played by the late Taylor Hawkins (Foo Fighters)—a bold choice, considering that many other artists would’ve placed the song at the beginning of their tracklists. The strategy works: Hawkins’ masterful drums combined with Straus’ muffled vocals, boosted by Mark Ronson’s excellent production, make the best closing track of the year and leave listeners on their tip-toes, wondering which screw-ups she’ll turn into pop gold next.
Though there are still songs about love and heartbreak, Hold On Baby is a self-contemplating kind of record. She’s no longer peeking outside through the window curtains; now, she steps back into the room and stares at its walls—it’s time to remove the makeup, recognize what’s wrong and maybe ponder the next steps. Straus co-wrote and co-produced all the tracks on the album and allowed experienced musicians (Mark Ronson, Aaron Dessner) to add solid contributions to the project, but her imprint remains all over her work like a neon marker on a printed spreadsheet. The record is introspective, but we never feel left out of its atmospheric sound. Maybe that is why her art makes so many feel welcomed and seen. There is glory in being a queer musician scratching the surface of the rockstar lifestyle without rejecting normalcy or erasing her personality, which she might not even realize because she’s too busy playing PS5.
Listen to Hold On Baby:
