New Music Friday - 29/08/2025

Albums/EPs:

• CMAT - EURO-COUNTRY
• Sabrina Carpenter - Man's Best Friend 
• Tei Shi - Make Believe I Make Believe 
• The Beaches - No Hard Feelings 

Singles:

• Ashnikko - Sticky Fingers
• BENEE - Cinnamon 
• Déyyess - She Knows 
• Eli - Like a Girl 
• Ella Eyre - red flags & love hearts  
• Hayley Williams - Parachute
• Jessie J - Believe in Magic
• lozeak - FUND$ 
• Mulaa Joans - Members Only  
• Nemo - God's a Raver
• Ruti - If I could Choose It Would Be You 

 

CMAT - EURO-COUNTRY:

Billy Byrne From Ballybrack, The Leader Of The Pigeon Convoy: Well, that's a long name. Also, pigeons are overhated. Interesting start. Oh, it's an intro track. Fun! I think it set the mood well honestly. [No rating].

EURO-COUNTRY: This almost gives me a bit of alt pop vibes. The voice here is good. It feels quite atmospheric. More of a chill bop. But I'm enjoying it! The 'EURO COUNTRY' bit being repeated is quite catchy. As is the whole song really. 7/10

When A Good Man Cries: This feels like it has country influences (surprise, maybe?). I enjoyed it though. Good voice, good production. 7/10

The Jamie Oliver Petrol Station: My favourite kind of petrol stations. Joke, I hate them all. Sorry. Another pretty good song. The chorus is catchy but honestly the whole song is good. Don't quite get what's going on lyrically but eh, who cares? 7/10

Tree Six Foive: Another good country based song. This album so far is just well produced, good vocals, it just sounds good. 7/10

Take A Sexy Picture Of Me: Don't think I'm quite as much of a fan of this one. Good country vibes again but it misses something compared to the rest of them. I just feel it a bit less. 6/10

Ready: This weirdly reminded me of some of an Adele song. Don't know why. Anyway, I feel it's also decent, but I'm not feeling this one as much as well. 6/10

Iceberg: Was a bit boring to me but it still sounded good even if it didn't really do much for me. 6/10

Coronation St.: Again, a bit slow and not as much my vibe. I think this one I enjoyed less. Not that it's bad though. Where did the momentum go? 5/10

Lord, Let That Tesla Crash: Don't threaten me with a good time. This one worked with me more even though it didn't quite sound how I expected it to. The vocals were a big win once again. 6/10

Running/Planning: Feels like this may be one of the less good songs again. The chorus is a good part of the song though. You know what, because the chorus is really good, even with how repetitive it is, this is actually a good song. And because the chorus takes up a huge amount of it. So it was good in the end! 7/10

Janis Joplining: Well, that was an unfortunately bland way to finish the album. Why couldn't we have ended on a high? I don't know. Arghhh. Oh well. 5/10

Overall Verdict: The first half of this album, I really did like. The second half, however, I definitely did not like as much. It's hard for me to identify what exactly changed. In the first half, I really enjoyed the production, as well as the vocals, and it felt like this was a decent album with some strong country influences. However, in the second half, I started to find it more bland and boring, and all the elements did not work together as well for me. Perhaps I started to tire of it? I do not know. Regardless, there's some definite talent here, but this was less good than I would have liked it to be. 

Sabrina Carpenter - Man's Best Friend:

Manchild: Even from those awful synths and "oh boy"...it's destined to be a flop. It's got some highly annoying parts in it. To be fair to it, I don't actively hate it. Now I just think it's a meh song. Progress! Maybe in 50 years I'll think it's a 6 out of 10! 5/10

Tears: This feels like a ghost of a dance or disco leaning song somehow, if that makes sense? Like it should work but it just doesn't? I will say, it's not terrible though. It does have some catchy elements. 5/10

My Man on Willpower: What the hell is this? It feels soulless, almost like a Sabrina Carpenter AI generated this song. It screams blandless and just...nothing. 4/10

Sugar Talking: Uh, I hear both an acoustic guitar and a country influence there...oh thank god it didn't stay just like that. That definitely improved things. It feels like the same tired Sabrina shtick lyrically though. 6/10

We Almost Broke Up Again Last Night: Uh oh the guitar is back and prominent. No thanks. Yeah, this one is bland both lyrically and production wise. 5/10 

Nobody's Son: Don't like the vocal effects at the start here mixed with that production. Sounds goofy. Blehhhh. It does feel like this song has a bit of 'haha I have goofy songs about men with goofy ass country production'. I don't think it works well at all. 4/10

Never Getting Laid: Omg a song for the incels #IncelRights! Okay I will admit that transition was pretty nice, you get that one Sabrina. Anyway, another bland song in the same territory, both sonically and lyrically. At least it was kinda a bit different at the end. 4/10

When Did You Get Hot?: I feel like this song actually has something to it. It's a bit different, and I think Sabrina's energy and general 'thing' works well here. It's definitely a song I liked at least somewhat. I like the general groove of it. I think it's not *quite* there to be a higher score but it gets close in parts. No, not a fade out, boooo! 6/10

Go Go Juice: You can feel the country influence here again. It has that sort of vibe. I'd say I'd put it in the 'meh' category rather than the 'bad' one. The chorus is definitely better than the rest of the song. It has something to it. Never mind, that bridge was AWFUL. Oh my god, I HATED that. It ruined the last chorus too. Like, YIKES. Way to ruin everything. 4/10

Don't Worry I'll Make You Worry: Boring. Like just incredibly bland. There's basically nothing to this whatsoever. It isn't terrible but it's also just nothing. 4/10

House Tour: This is at least a bit more interesting. It has a bit more of a 'bop' vibe but here I'm less keen on the vocals. It really feels like Sabrina is leaning too much into the same old stuff here. 5/10

Goodbye: ZZZZZ. Goodbye to this album. It has a couple of interesting elements with the 'ahah' bits but it's still bland and boring. 5/10

Overall Verdict: Unfortunately, this was Sabrina Carpenter's worst album since the start of her 'new' career with Emails I Can't Send. This feels almost like a Sabrina Carpenter AI was tasked to make a Sabrina Carpenter album. The results are a soulless and bland project, with stale lyrics and themes that Sabrina has now done to death. The production is mediocre and I think most songs fail to have any sort of interesting hook to them. It was essentially like background music, and a fair part of it was bad. While I'm not exactly a Sabrina fan, I have songs that I like from her, but I do not think I'll be taking any from this album. 

Tei Shi - Make believe I make believe:

Anything (best friend): I mean, it's cute, nice vocals and all, but it has the acoustic singer-songwriter type vibe that's not really my favourite. 6/10

Best be leaving: It was a bit more boppy but I basically felt the same about this. Liked the vocals though. 6/10

Drop dead: More of a bop, and definitely more my vibe. Just wish it was longer honestly. I feel like I didn't have enough time with it. 7/10

Montón: This almost has more of a holiday vibe to it. I liked the production. Still, not really my favourite though. Decent. 6/10

Which half ?: Yeah, pretty much same here. Decent. Nothing really special to draw me in fully. Nice listen but that's it. 6/10

Iris: Pretty similar. Decent but nothing really stands out to me. Pleasant listen. Hopefully it improves soon. 6/10

Don't cry: Bit more interesting production but still not really a favourite sadly. Did enjoy the chorus a bit more but not quite enough. 6/10

222 (feat. Loyal Lobos): Oh, this is one of the most interesting songs production wise. Slay there. Good feature too I think. I enjoyed this. 7/10

Aphrodite: Also felt this was a bit more interesting but I don't think I majorly liked it again. At least it was a bit more interesting production wise for me. 6/10

Nanaimo: Very boring start. Let's hope it improves. Yeah, unfortunately, this stayed boring and just bland. Probably the worst song on the album for me. Bad way to finish. 5/10

Overall Verdict: For the most part, I'd park this album in the category of 'pleasant/decent but not really for me'. It felt too slow, too acoustic based, and a bit too 'bland' for me to majorly like it. That being said, I liked the vocals in a lot of the project, and it did have some catchy elements to it, and some interesting production. While it is not a project I will return to, I am glad I listened to it. 

The Beaches - No Hard Feelings:

Can I Call You in the Morning?: No, you can't. So don't even bother trying. Hmm, a bit of a mixed song for me. I kinda partially like and partially don't. Actually, in the end, I think I enjoyed this. Good song. Good production and vocals. 7/10

Did I Say Too Much: Well, this was a fun and energetic bop! Enjoyed this song. 7/10

Sorry For Your Loss: Pretty similar here. Energetic and fun bop. Pretty similar to the last song but I enjoyed it. 7/10

Touch Myself: Kinda giving me some rock vibes. But I liked it again. Good song. 7/10

Fine, Let's Get Married: No, I don't want to. Not really much original for me to say. I enjoyed it. Similar vibes. 7/10

Takes One To Know One: Again, similar. Nothing special. Good stuff. Me when I run out of stuff to say. 7/10

I Wore You Better: Should I just stop writing at this point and give the same scores? I did like the 'I Wore You Better' hook here so at least I had something original to say. 7/10

Dirty Laundry: I don't think I quite felt this one as much for some reason. I don't know, maybe it's because I'm getting a bit tired of the album. Who knows? It's still decent though. 6/10

Lesbian Of The Year: Not the gold star lyric. Anyway, this was a pleasant listen both production wise and vocally, even though it's slower than songs I typically like. 7/10

Jocelyn: Okay, this seems like a winner from the start. Pretty good song yet again. Wait, PhD in politics? PhD in politics? THAT'S GOING TO BE ME! FINALLY, A SONG FOR ME! I'VE NEVER BEEN THIS REPRESENTED BEFORE WOW! I'M SEEN BY MUSIC FINALLY. Anyway, good song. And don't do a PhD in anything. You've been warned. 7/10

Last Girls At The Party: Definitely not quite my favourite song to finish the album. It didn't compare to the previous song for me. It wasn't bad but I definitely enjoyed it less. Oh well, what can you do? 6/10

Overall Verdict: Interestingly, this album did not really spark much thought in me. However, I thought it was a good album! They have a talent for interesting and just good music. The production was great throughout, as were the vocals. This was an album that I was glad to listen to. While no song particularly sticks out to me over another, the album was a consistently good listen, and I could easily see myself listening again in future. 

Singles:

Ashnikko - Sticky Fingers: Okay miss cunty. This has pretty cunty energy. I like it. Jesus, why was that too short? What the hell is that about? Stop it! Good other than the length. The length is criminal. 7/10

BENEE - Cinnamon: It's decent. That's about all I have to say about it really. Honestly, from the album art I thought it would be a bit more cunty, but sadly not. It's fine though. 6/10

Déyyess - She Knows: Almost gives me a bit of Lana vibes vocally and so on. It was enjoyable enough. Generally not my style of music. 6/10

Eli - Like a Girl: This was cute! I liked it overall. It was a nice chiller bop, with some nice vocals. Kinda gives me some Troye Sivan vibes at times. 7/10 

Ella Eyre - red flags & love hearts: Not typically my vibe but it was enjoyable. It's no RED FLAG. by Kesha though, is it? I enjoyed it anyway, it was a good song. Good vocals and catchy production. 7/10

Hayley Williams - Parachute: The new song added to the totally not an album that's now an album. Fun start. Oh, this might be one of the best songs on the album. That chorus is killer. Great vocals and great production. Like, wow, instant hit for me. 8/10

Jessie J - Believe in Magic: Acoustic? Okay? But also it's getting faster so...? Maybe it will go somewhere else? Oh, there we go. A bit bland overall honestly even with those faster parts. Those parts are better, of course. But I'm not feeling much from this song. 5/10

lozeak - FUND$: Slayyyter tease? Hell yeah I'm excited for that. Good start. It's definitely not as fast as some of her other songs but it's pretty good. Enjoyed it! Feels pretty classic lozeak to me. 7/10

Mulaa Joans - Members Only: Piano? Not what I expected but sure why not. Quite a nice voice. The voice really carries. It's a nice listen, I think it's a good piano based song. 7/10

Nemo - God's a Raver: God's everything these days, huh? Well, that is NOT how I expected a song titled this to start. I...find this a bit cringe honestly. Like, the high pitched vocals verge on childish and you know how I feel about songs like that. And it's just a bit goofy. Meh. 4/10

Ruti - If I could Choose It Would Be You: Please pick me please! PICK ME! Uh oh never mind it's an acoustic guitar - I don't want to be picked anymore. Not sure I'm a huge fan of Ruti's voice. Again, it was alright, nothing too special, I did enjoy the production overall even with the guitar but the vocals did not totally work for me. 6/10