When Billie Eilish released her first single, “Ocean Eyes” in 2016, the song quickly went viral, making the then 14-year-old singer and songwriter an overnight success.
But while people knew the song, few really knew the singer behind the sound.
Then, all at once, Eilish became a name on all radio stations, streaming playlists and talk shows. Just a year after releasing a single song, Eilish has multiple tracks combined into one LP, “don’t smile at me.”
For someone born after the year 2000, Eilish’s music is deeper and more powerful than most tracks on the radio produced by aged professionals. Now 17 years old, topping the charts over her older counterparts and bringing in more than 44 million monthly Spotify listeners, there is no stopping Eilish.
The young star knows how to cater to her audience — blend electro-pop and indie with a funky title and an even funkier music video. But even more than her understanding of what people want, Eilish knows how to set herself apart through music and her persona.
There is no doubt Eilish is a little scary … in a good way. With popular tracks such as “all the good girls go to hell” and “bury a friend,” Eilish is no doubt a little sinister in sound and expression.
Hailey Stewart | Argonaut
Several of the singer’s music videos feature a blue-black liquid draining from her eyes. Her fashion choices usually involve some sort of chain. And with an astounding 17 million Instagram followers, Eilish follows exactly 666 in return.
There’s more to the singer than just the twisted and rather unusual sound. There is a deeper set of lyrics to unfold in her newest album, “When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?”
Perhaps the most haunting of her newest tracks is “bury a friend.” Fit for the background sounds of a horror film, just the electronics and instrumentals of this song are mesmerizing. The lyrics “step on the glass, staple your tongue” may not sound like they would come from a young 17-year-old, but they work for Eilish.
“Bad guy” takes a stab at female empowerment and a jab at masculinity. It’s dark and poppy. When the rhythm breaks around two minutes and thirty seconds into the song, Eilish takes it one step further and brings the heat with a breathy ending.
Aside from the deeper sound and rhythms, Eilish makes light of love and attraction in “wish you were gay.” Adding to that lightness and on-brand bizarreness, “my strange addiction” brings airy vocals, synth-heavy sounds and several overlays of dialogue from “The Office.” Much like Eilish herself, it’s weird and it works.
Eilish knows how to round out an album. The last three tracks, “listen before i go,” “i love you” and “goodbye,” all provide haunting endnotes to a spectacularly profound and intense album.
The singer’s sound and style has developed immensely since 2016. When you’re 17 and already producing music people can’t get enough of, the only question is: “what’s next?”
“When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?” is delicately crafted and intricately framed around what makes Eilish stand out — she doesn’t care about convention. Among everything else, I expect Eilish will give her fans anything but average.
Hailey Stewart can be reached at [email protected]or on Twitter @Hailey_ann97