We’ve waited more than a year and it was really, really worth it. South London’s Lola Young has unleashed a sophomore album that deserves to be upheld alongside Amy Winehouse’s Back To Black.
This Wasn’t Meant For You Anyway is a record that refuses to conform to mediocrity. With Solomonophic at the production helm, known for his collabs Remi Wolf and Still Woozy, Lola Young has crafted a veritable cocktail of youthful angst and rebellion.
Album opener ‘Good Books’ immediately challenges us with its atmospheric, percussion-driven threads, delivering an ultimatum with the bite of raw conviction: “It’s me or the weed”. It sets the stage for a collection that deftly oscillates between brash defiance and tender vulnerability. ‘Wish You Were Dead’ and ‘Big Brown Eyes’ showcase a grunge-pop bravado that is as arresting as it is disarmingly honest.
Young’s lyrical prowess shines in tracks like ‘Fuck’ and ‘Conceited’, the latter dripping with an Arctic Monkeys-esque swagger, evoking the gritty charm of indie sleaze (it sounds a lot like ‘Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High’ but serves as a brilliant homage rather than a flimsy replica). ‘Messy’, a track rich in acerbic wit, culminates in a chorus that lays bare Lola’s multifaceted persona: “And I’m too perfect, so I show you that I’m not / A thousand people I could be for you and you hate the fucking lot”.
In stark contrast, ‘Intrusive Thoughts’ and ‘You Noticed’ expose a more introspective side, where sparse arrangements allow Young’s voice to convey a haunting fragility. The album’s crescendo, ‘Crush’, mirrors the anthemic desperation of Radiohead’s ‘Creep’, a fitting penultimate to the deeply personal spoken word outro.
This album is a declaration of intent, in Lola’s own words, a bold ‘fuck you’ to exes and detractors alike. This Wasn’t Meant For You Anyway takes the form of both an LP and a manifesto, an effort to chronicle the tumultuous chaos of youth, packaged in a ball of scathing wit and unflinching honesty. It’s a debut that demands attention, unapologetically South London in its spirit and execution.
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