Orla Gartland’s sophomore album, Everybody Needs a Hero, is a clear evolution of her musical style, building on her honest and witty songwriting in the best way possible. The album switches genres with ease, showing off Gartland’s indie-rock capabilities, whilst still keeping elements of her indie-pop roots.
The opener, ‘Both Can Be True’, is a stripped-back, beautifully sung ballad that offers a surprising contrast to the album’s otherwise bold and bombastic sound. The song’s brevity showcases Gartland’s lyrical brilliance, as she manages to effortlessly capture the challenge of maintaining one’s individuality while in a relationship. The closing lines, ‘I fucking love you / But this shit is hard / I guess that both can be true’, poignantly convey the complexities of love, illustrating how relationships can be both deeply fulfilling and emotionally difficult.
Gartland follows up this contemplative, piano-focused track, with ‘THE SOUND OF LETTING GO’, an incredibly catchy and intense song celebrating the joy of letting go and accepting what cannot be changed. The powerful production and loud drum beats encapsulate the celebratory tone of the track, as the singer concludes ‘I can’t change you, can’t change me, can’t change anything / So, I guess I gotta let it go’ in a decisive and inspiring final chorus.
Lead single ‘Little Chaos’ continues this energetic feel, with a head-banging beat and dominant electric guitars reflecting the ‘chaos’ the singer brings to her life. The witty lyricism makes this an instant earworm, particularly the memorable and entertaining chorus: ‘Pick me up, take me home / Turn me off, turn me on / I’m your friend, I’m your girl / I’m your little chaos’. Aside from the bouncy rhythm, ‘Little Chaos’ is also a remarkably empowering track, with Gartland embracing her chaotic lifestyle and reassuring her listeners that they can never be too much, and those who love them will ‘take me as I am’. This is a standout track, instantly catchy and an irresistible listen.
‘Backseat Driver’ is a groovy, sonically experimental listen, combining the plaguing feelings of self-doubt with an 80s-esque synthy production and eclectic instrumentation (note the cowbells at the end of the track). The lyrical contrast to ‘Little Chaos’, with Gartland deciding that ‘No one likes an angry girl, no one likes a liar / No one likes a conversation walking on a wire’ and trying to tone down her more ‘chaotic’ traits, highlights the singer’s uncertainty of herself at times, an inspiringly honest reflection of how most of us feel at times.
‘The Hit’ is reminiscent of Gartland’s earlier EP Why Am I Like This?, with its slower rhythm and showcasing of the singer’s stunning vocals. Her voice is given a chance to truly shine, especially in the bridge, where Gartland reflects on how relationships can become unhealthy if you care about the other person to the point that it hurts: ‘Two weirdos, two sisters, too good to be true / I never know how to let it go when I’m this close to you’. ‘Simple’ is similarly stripped back, mainly focusing on her vocals and lyrics. Gartland conveys the beauty of falling in love, and the small moments that accompany it. The chorus expresses this simplicity with its direct and unadorned lines: ‘It’s a coffee with an old friend / It’s a lie-in on the weekend / It’s your parents looking at you / Like they’re proud of you for once’. ‘Simple’ is a gorgeous love song, understated in its production yet still lyrically impactful.
‘Late To The Party’ is the only track on the album with a feature: the talented and increasingly popular Declan McKenna. McKenna’s vocals pair perfectly with Gartland’s, as the two sing about dealing with baggage in a new relationship. The build-up to the first chorus works perfectly, as the song distorts and the beat slows down to a crawl. McKenna enters for the second chorus, complementing Gartland’s vocals without overshadowing them, and his bridge, accompanied by pounding drums and relentless electric guitar, succinctly expresses the neverending cycle of carrying baggage within a relationship. A song that grows on you with every listen, it is a vibrant, energetic party number.
‘Three Words Away’ shows off Gartland’s musical diversity, with its rock-leaning production and layered instrumentals creating a uniquely captivating listening experience. The sudden entrance of the bass guitar throughout the track heightens its unpredictability, as Gartland herself feels: ‘And I’m three words away from absolutely fucking ruining your life / I’m freaking out’. Her feelings of instability lead perfectly into the next track, ‘Kiss Your Face Forever’. Gartland explores the difficulties of a long-term relationship, accompanied by an indie-rock sound that is at times overshadowed by the singer’s experimental and impressive vocals. This track is still energetic and emotional, but could have benefited from the more experimental instrumentation that we saw in ‘Backseat Driver’ or ‘Three Words Away’.
‘Who Am I?’ is a heartbreakingly honest track, centred around the devastating lyric ‘If I’m your everything, who am I?’ Gartland examines the complexities of a romantic relationship in slightly more depth than the opening track, and the song contains some truly gut-punching lines. The start of the chorus exemplifies the singer’s impossible struggle to be the perfect partner, as she sings: ‘Been tryna be everything / But I can’t be your rock, and your lover, your mum’. Her loss of identity is slowly tracked throughout the song, ending with the brutally hopeless realisation: ‘Now I’m not anything / Just a silhouette of the person I was.’
‘Mine’ is undeniably the masterpiece of the entire album, and is difficult to do justice. A truly beautiful track, it is a heartwrenching and honest exploration of sexual trauma. Gartland’s vulnerability is reflected by the stripped-back instrumentals, with her live vocals only accompanied by guitar and a 4-piece string part. A stunning and haunting song, it is a clear standout of Everybody Needs a Hero.
The closing title track, is the longest on the album and encompasses Gartland’s thoughts on love and relationships, as she admits her need for connection but still acknowledges the pain that often accompanies it. The singer combines her more recognisable vocal-driven style with this new indie-rock production, showcasing her evolving sound and artistic growth. It is a powerful and thematically fitting closer to the singer’s sophomore album.
Everybody Needs a Hero is an undeniably impressive second album, showcasing Orla Gartland’s talents as a songwriter, as well as her ability to create a cohesive and thematically rich record. This is an album filled with infectious, catchy tracks, but still retains those slower, contemplative songs that Gartland became known for.
Words by Emily Nutbean
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