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Dua Lipa’s ‘Radical Optimism’ Is a Joyous Blast of Pop Savvy: Album Review
On her third album 'Radical Optimism,' Dua Lipa offers a direct pop record dressed up and perfected in the way that the best pop music does.
Lipa corralled a team of musicians — Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker, Tobias Jesso Jr., Danny L. Harle — to confect a world unto its own, from the thrust of “These Walls” to the French touch of “Illusion.” It’s at once satiating and electrifying. But it feels distinctly new to Lipa, folding in Spanish guitars on “Maria” and tropical ecstasy on opener “End of an Era.” Much has been bandied about how she’s on an endless summer vacation, with Instagram posts that document her seemingly perpetual travels. To that, in an era where artists are as valuable as the success of their singles, it’s a wonder that Lipa’s very traditional rollout yielded less comparable returns than that of “Nostalgia.” “Houdini,” the project’s leading track, is as inoffensive as it is hooky, yet it somehow felt far less significant than “Dance the Night,” her Oscar-nominated contribution to “Barbie the Album.” Fans online have attributed much of the album’s faults thus far to her team, who leaked the lyrics to the entirety of the record months ahead of time by putting images of the vinyl sleeve on social media.
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