Anne-Marie is heartbroken but, on UNHEALTHY, she’s loving it.
Where the star’s brilliant 2019 sophomore record Therapy revelled in self-love and forgiveness, the follow-up three years later kicks that mantra into the long grass as the singer spits feathers at those who dared cross her.
The result is a project that leans into some of Anne-Marie‘s most daring production yet across 16 tracks and 40 minutes of work that include some of the star’s career best.
It’s been a long run-up for UNHEALTHY to hit shelves with lead single ‘PSYCHO’ dropping nearly a year ago. That Aitch feature, which samples Lou Bega’s dancefloor-filler ‘Mambo No. 5’, remains one of the best pop tracks of the last 12 months. Catchy yet jarring with verses carefully built to fly on TikTok, it’s evidence that one of the industry’s most desired songwriters very much still has it.
‘SAD B!TCH’ follows in a similar vein, as does ‘HAUNT YOU’ which has elements of 2020 fan-favourite and criminally underrated single ‘Problems’.
Anne-Marie’s trademark teasing vocal and grungy pop production is a winning recipe the star doesn’t hold back from using in measure on UNHEALTHY. ‘GRUDGE’ is the singer at her most playful and a flick destined to impress in live shows while the snarling verses of ‘CUCKOO’ give way to a bopping chorus.
The album’s standout moment comes with a cameo from Shania Train on title track ‘UNHEALTHY’. Anne-Marie takes a moment to drop the big pop production for a country twang in a track that marks her best single since the platinum ‘2002’. ‘TRAINWRECK’ is close to being in that league with its soaring choruses effortlessly bidding goodbye to a past lover.
For fans of the Anne-Marie vocal, there are tracks on UNHEALTHY which lean into the star’s penchant for a moment of more quiet self-reflection. ‘KILLS ME TO LOVE YOU’ and ‘NEVER LOVED ANYONE BEFORE’ are two of those, but don’t hit the heights of intimate Khalid collab ‘YOU & I’.
The deluxe edition of UNHEALTHY finishes with a flurry. ‘Better Off’ was debuted as live shows last year and its bleeting sirens make for a daring, euphoric number.
‘ICK’ has drawn its critics for being cringeworthy but its Billen Ted production ensures it’s far from that before MINNIE and (G)I-DLE collab ‘Expectations’ is catchy but perhaps a strange choice of closer.
Staying at the top of the pop game requires reinvention and Anne-Marie has proved a master of that. She’ll no doubt hope the heartbreak stays away for a while but to have turned it into a project like UNHEALTHY is a triumph.
Rating – 5/5
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