Doja Cat ‘Scarlet’ reviews: Is it ‘hands-down her best album’ or ‘incoherent’?
Doja Cat released her fourth full-length studio album, “Scarlet,” on September 22 after months of anticipation. But was it worth the wait? Music critics have weighed in, and they’re somewhat divided.
As of this writing the album has a MetaCritic score of 72 based on 10 reviews counted thus far, which indicates “generally favorable reviews.” That’s not far off from her last album, “Planet Her,” which scored 76 based on 14 reviews. But not everyone is onboard. Five of the current reviews are classified as positive, but the other five are mixed, though none are outright negative.
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Among the album’s champions is Jem Aswad (Variety), who says “Scarlet” is “hands-down her best album … The album is loaded with singles, but it’s a real album, with most of the other songs branching out her sound and showing off her killer flow.” Roisin O’Connor (Independent UK) adds, “‘Scarlet’ operates in its own strange world. This time, Doja Cat is cruising down blood-soaked streets under looming storm clouds. It may sound scary, but the artist is in her element as she takes the bad with the good.” And Jacob Uitti (American Songwriter) calls her “sexy, biting, talented, creative. Of the moment. And though thousands of hours went into it, there is an effortless quality to Doja Cat’s vocal delivery.”
Among the less enthusiastic reviewers, Alexis Petridis (The Guardian) argues that “after a while, you feel that points that have already been made are being reiterated,” and that “a long album is made to seem longer still by its weird structure, a glut of slower and more abstract tracks taking up most of its second half.” Anna Gaca (Pitchfork) says, “It’s reactive and repetitive, pairing unsurprising takes on traditionalist hip-hop with sharp retorts to last season’s insults.” And Charles Lyons-Burt (Slant) thinks “the songwriting feels aimless, almost incoherent.” What do you think?
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