Faye Webster is back with her fifth album, “Underdressed at the Symphony,” straying away from her usual lyrical ballads opting for a more experimental version of her typical “sad-girl indie” style. Webster’s album suffers from repetitive instrumentals and lyrics, lacking substance in favor of experimentation.
Webster lets her band shine on this album, almost to the fault of her own lyrics. “Thinking About You,” has beautiful instrumentals, opening with an addictive guitar riff backed with keys and drums, but lacks lyrical substance. It is difficult to find a storyline with the limited lyrics not only on this song but throughout the album. The phrase, “thinking about you,” is repeated over 20 times, which leads the six minute song to feel boring.
Webster falls victim to this again on “Lifetime” when only eight lines of the five minute song say anything other than “in a lifetime.” I have always loved Webster’s lyricism because it makes her songs relatable, but on this album, there is a significant lack of anything to relate to. Compared to Webster’s last album “I Know I’m Funny haha,” where she talks of love, delusion and loneliness, “Underdressed at the Symphony,” lacks emotions.
As the album progresses, Webster begins to stray away from slower ballads and introduces some faster, almost rock, songs. “Lego Ring,” featuring Lil Yachty is the best example of this, utilizing electric guitar to back Webster and Lil Yachty’s distorted vocals. Switches in pacing on this song between the high energy verses and slower chorus make it interesting, distracting from the once again lackluster lyricism. Lil Yachty’s feature is a welcome break to the haziness of the rest of the album and successfully contrasts Webster’s quiet vocals.
The mixing of “Underdressed at the Symphony,” makes it difficult to listen to. The band on “eBay Purchase History,” is almost too loud, making it difficult to discern Webster’s soft voice from the guitar and flute. The instrumentals on this song are also among my least favorite on the album. The constant dinging and switches between flute and guitar make for a confusing listen.
Overall, this album feels disconnected and lacks an overarching theme, making it difficult to listen to all the way through. I would recommend listening to these songs individually before the repetition of the album gets too much to bear.
