Unless you’ve had your head in the sand for the last ten years, you know who Ariana Grande is. And, believe it or not, she’s only been one of the biggest pop divas in the world for about ten years – her debut album will be eleven years old this coming August.
In that eleven year span, Grande has been disgustingly prolific. Eternal Sunshine is her seventh studio album – in eleven years – which also comes after the longest delay between albums1 following 2020’s Positions. Between 2013 and 2020, the only year in which Grande did not release an album was 2015.
All of that is wildly absurd to me. Granted, it really hasn’t hurt her success. Or her quality, seemingly. I have only previously reviewed 2019’s Thank U, Next, and my process was much more informal back then, but it was a solid album, and definitely in the middle of that long annual run.
I do not, of course, have any real insight into Grande’s process. But she is listed as the primary lyricist, songwriter, and producer on every track for Eternal Sunshine, with only Max Martin’s name competing with hers in terms of frequency. It is notable that this seems to be the first album where Grande has producer credits. Looking backward, she seems to have gradually taken on more and more of the production process with each album, starting with lyrics, then composition, and finally she’s worked herself up to a level of competency where she felt confident enough to be her own producer. I also noticed that she’s worked with Martin sporadically in the past, but he was absent on Positions, and now on Eternal Sunshine he seems to be her right hand.
Their chemistry here is undeniable, though, as the album is full of fun, boppy tracks with creative production elements. It is, of course, primarily composed of the same mix of Pop and R&B that Grande and several other Pop artists who arose in the 10s helped to push to the fore, but there’s also plenty of infusion from other genres, such as Dance and Synth Pop. The Dance elements also lean heavily into Disco on “Bye” and “Yes, And?”
Eternal Sunshine is a divorce album; Grande was, briefly, married to real estate agent Dalton Gomez for just shy of two years, from May 2021 to February 2023. The weight of this relationship on the album can be seen in the titles and lyrics of various tracks, especially near the beginning (“Bye”, “Dont Wanna Break Up Again”, and “Eternal Sunshine”)2 and end (“We Can’t Be Friends”, “I Wish I Hated You”, and “Imperfect For You”) of the album.
There are, though, tracks like “The Boy is Mine” in the middle of the album which impede the album’s proper classification as a concept album.
Even so, the album is, tonally, all over the place, from upbeat dance bops to mid-tempo jams. Some defiant, some pensive. But there is an overarching sense of emotional and intellectual maturity throughout the album which sort of ties everything together, even as each song creates its own identity.
So while the album is not as tight-knit or as long as I would like (at only 33 minutes once you cut the intro and interlude), it’s very good from start-to-finish, and it’s a testament to how good Grande has gotten at her craft.
Rating: Teal
Robin’s Corner
Quick preface: I am really not an "album" listener. I get bored hearing the same voice and same vibe for too long.
That being said: this whole fucking album is a BOP. While I definitely got to the point where I was ready for some variance in voice and style toward the end - I was able to groove through the entire thing. Twice, even. It’s mellow and groovy and the songs are just different enough to give it some ups and downs so it doesn't get too grating on the ear.
“Yes, and?” is amazing. Definitely one of the stand outs that will have you dancing and singing along. The title track, “Eternal Sunshine” is also a very good one to get all up in your feels with.
The one that stood out the most to me was actually “Imperfect For You”. The way the melody literally is imperfect and jarring to pull attention was very clever and on one hand makes the song a little hard to listen to (especially when you know it's coming and are waiting for that -ugh- moment). But on the other is just fantastic storytelling using everything to add to it.
Overall, I really enjoyed this album and can't wait to have the songs on shuffle in my bigger playlist. =) This is definitely a blue for me, possibly even purple.
Rating: Blue
It’s worth noting that the reason for the long delay, not including Covid, is because Grande wanted to wait until she was done filming for the upcoming Wicked movie, in which she plays Glinda. Wicked is scheduled to release on Nov 27, 2024.
The album and its title track are named after Jim Carrey’s 2004 film, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, the plot of which features a biotech company that has developed the ability to delete specific memories from a person’s mind, and the film subsequently explores how this concept might affect the end of a relationship.