Dua Lipa - Radical Optimism (2024) Review
Dua Lipa’s third studio album, Radical Optimism, is a bright, feel-good album that has been consistently on rotation since it dropped a few weeks ago. The album is only thirty-six minutes long which if we’re being honest is near-perfect length for an album because lots of albums are overly long and full of dumb shit and filler and few justify their length. The roll-out for this was way too long. “Houdini” dropped in November, but the album wasn’t released until May, and that’s wild. This album comes four years after Future Nostalgia and was promised to have a heavy dose of neo-psychedelia, however, I think the album could’ve delved deeper into the psyche sounds. Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker produced a majority of the album, while Danny Harle and Ian Kirkpatrick also have notable credits.
The album begins with “End Of An Era,” a house-inspired track that serves as a solid opener. When Dua sings “The sweetest pleasure” during the chorus it sounds amazing and sort of reminds me of The Cardigan’s “Lovefool.” The production is fantastic and the synths and vocals sound especially good. The post-chorus thing that starts appearing in the song’s second half is also great. I absolutely love the half-singing and half-talking during it. A pretty great opener.
I’ve spoken highly of “Houdini” before and it’s for good reason, it clears the rest of the songs on Radical Optimism and is a top Dua Lipa song in general. Even though the single version fits the album, I still prefer the extended edit more. It’s a great song all around and the guitar riff outro is insane.
I already liked “Training Season” but it’s grown on me even more since I first gave it a listen. Even three tracks in you already get the feeling that there are psychedelic elements that almost sound like they’re being neutered. For example, the synth that pops up in the background in the pre-chorus, or the vocal delay and modulation in the bridge when she says “Waiting for someone to tell you to go.” These parts give you a taste of the psychedelic production but they aren’t given too much time to make it feel like a psych song.
“These Walls” is a pretty straightforward song with a decent vocal performance. The piano intro and the verses are better than the chorus. Hell, even the bridge is pretty solid, so the chorus may be the weak link. Overall, the song is pretty decent. “Watcha Doing” should be the next single. This song is perfect for summer and it is very catchy. The bass line on this song is excellent and brings back memories of Calvin Harris’ Funk Wav Bounces, Vol. 1. I like everything about this song. This is what a pop song should be: sparkly production, catchy melodies, and easy listening.
Halfway through this album we get “French Exit” which I was initially lukewarm on, but has grown on me over the past few weeks. The drumming is really cool and you can immediately tell its Kevin Parker on the kit by his loose and fill-filled style. The vibe and sound of the sounds give me the impression that they were listening and influenced by lots of early 2000s RnB. “French Exit” is a type of song that you enjoy the longer it goes on and will probably win you over by the end. It’s a minor nitpick but I sort of wish the song immediately sort of like “Ize of the World” by The Strokes just so they could better utilize word painting.
Next on the album was the most recent single released, “Illusion.” This song is awesome. I thought it was good when it first dropped, and I’d say I like it even more now. As I’ve already mentioned the extended versions are better, however, in the context of the album the flow of the shorter versions works fine. That live hi-hat that comes in during the verses is such a nice part of the song. I wish there was an even longer extended edit of this, something closer to like 7 minutes.
“Falling Forever” easily has the best vocal performance by Dua Lipa in the entire project. The drum beat is almost basically the same as Tame Impala’s weakest-ever track “Wings of Time,” but with a 1980s synth-pop twist to it. I like the song especially because the vocals stand out so much. I like the synth lines that appear throughout the song, but I do wish they were more prominent.
“Anything for Love” is the most frustrating song on the project because they waste like thirty seconds of the two-minute song on a recording of the session, but once the song gets going and grooving it ends so suddenly. It would be baffling if this song didn’t get an extended edit because it has so much potential to be a solid addition to the tracklist. What I do hear, I love, but it is way too short and leaves me wanting more.
“Maria” is the penultimate song on the album and it’s a good song. The mix of acoustic guitar and acid house bass line sounds like it shouldn’t work but I enjoy it. The lyrics are also about a decent topic, about your partner’s ex and how they influence your current relationship positively. There are some 60s-inspired synth flutes right after the chorus and it’s a cool sound selection. There’s an interesting set of influences for this song, but I think they do a good job of it sounding cohesive, especially because the chorus and the dancey bass carry.
“Happy For You” is another standout track on the album and maybe my second favorite on the project. This song immediately sounds like Tame Impala and it is much more bittersweet-sounding but also arguably has the most optimistic lyrics on the album. This song is more what I thought a collaboration between Tame Impala and Dua Lipa would sound like. “Happy For You” works incredibly as a closing track. I don’t think she particularly hit the optimism theme super hard, but this song is the best example of it.
Every song on Radical Optimism sounds like candy because the production is so crisp and shimmery. I would like to hear an extended mix of the entire album since some of the songs, like “Anything For You,” left me wanting more. I think most of my gripes with this album are small nitpicks, and overall, I’m glad the album isn’t like 22 tracks long with a bunch of excessive filler because I prefer a cohesive and concise album. I would’ve enjoyed Tame Impala featuring Dua Lipa, but that is not what this album is. At moments I prefer this project to Future Nostalgia only because it is a more consistent album as a whole. Future Nostalgia does have higher highs, however, the lows are also much lower than anything on Radical Optimism. I thoroughly enjoy this album and I can see it easily being on rotation during summer just as Funk Wav Bounces, Vol. 1 was.
7/10 - Good Album