Meghan Trainor, 鈥淭akin' It Back鈥� (Epic Records)
Meghan Trainor is back with that doo-wop style of music that made her famous, but this time adding a twist to it.
Her new album 鈥淭akin' It Back,鈥� isn鈥檛 your usual journey of self love, this is a more mature Trainor. Riding the ups and downs we all secretly experience, moments of bursting confidence to self doubt and sadness with a sprinkle of reassuring reality.
Like in her single 鈥淒on鈥檛 I Make It Look Easy," Meghan talks about filtering the truth and showing the best part of herself to the world, even when it just feels like a straight out lie.
Since her last album, Trainor has done some growth of her own, getting married and becoming a mom, and she鈥檚 imparting all that she learned on the way.
Beginning to end, this album feels like a therapy session, with her lyrics Trainor is holding the mirror to our fears, as well as being a wise voice in the cloudy rainy days.
Don鈥檛 get me wrong. Like in life, this album is not just slow songs about self reflection, but it鈥檚 an uplifting fun experience.
Like in the single 鈥淢ade You Look,鈥� where a loud and sexier Trainor sings 鈥淚 could wear my Louis Vuitton, but even with nothin鈥� on, bet I made you look." is a family affair, featuring the singer鈥檚 best friend and TikToker Chris Olsen and former "Spy Kids" actor and her husband, Daryl Sabara.
Moreover, Trainor experiments through different music genres, like in the track 鈥淢ama Wanna Mambo." Featuring Dominican singer Natti Natasha and Cuban-American musician Arturo Sandoval, it鈥檚 sure to raise your dancing fever.
In the 12th track 鈥淲hile You're Young," Trainor鈥檚 lyrics feel like that familiar voice in our head we always ignore, sometimes even involuntarily.
She tries to shake all the worries away and asks us to be more vulnerable. 鈥淵ou鈥檝e only just begun and you鈥檙e good enough/And I know it doesn鈥檛 help with the pain, but have you ever tried to dance in the rain?/You鈥檙e not the only one who鈥檚 feelin鈥� this way.鈥�
The album ends with the slow song 鈥淔inal Breath," which brings you back to the center of your emotions. Just like the best therapy session would do, right before sending you out into the real world.
Meghan sings 鈥淚f I could, I鈥檇 do it all over again," and as you end this fluctuation of genres and feelings, you feel less alone and reassured you are not going through all of this alone.
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Martina Inchingolo, The Associated Press
