Sex. Drugs. What Else?

Tove Lo

Lady Wood

Polydor

Release date: October 28, 2016

By Shawal Ras

Follow @shawalras

Industrial synth vibe, sex, and drugs inspired Tove Lo's sophomore effort, Lady Wood.

Lo, full name Ebba Tove Elsa Nilsson, has finally dropped the much anticipated follow up to her breakthrough debut record and frankly speaking, it doesn't live up to our expectation.

Lady Wood, the singer's ode to female sexuality (the self-stimulating cover is pretty much a direct reference to Madonna's classic, Like A Prayer), gave us a conflicted view at the concept of love in this age of technology advancement and empowerment. I think it's pretty formulaic when compared to whatever we have in our pop playlist nowadays; from The Weeknd, to Britney Spears, Ariana Grande, and that God-forsaken Chainsmokers' number one hit, 'Closer'.

In short; I'm bored with that whole edgy, brash attitude she recycled from Queen of the Clouds. It was a fresh take back then in 2014, but today? Not so much. There's too much sex, too much of those Tumblr-driven melancholy ("Take our pics it's like a fix for your anxiety / The world is beautiful so why don't you feel anything"). Like I said, it's formulaic.

But, positively, when you deconstructed the album from track to track, Lady Wood is a great production. There are insatiable hooks, frigid beats, and her electro production is unapologetically modern Euro-pop at its finest. Swedes do have a thing with pop music, eh? 

The strongest track in the album is the lead single (and non-conformist anthem) itself, 'Cool Girl'. A Gone Girl-inspired dance hall bop driven by synth bass ala Kygo and Major Lazer. A huge hit that inspired my very own synth-heavy playlist (shameless plug; check it out in Spotify!).

Another standout cut taken from Lady Wood is 'True Disaster'. It's a stellar track that speaks of your uncertainty and reckless need over electronic vibe and I am obsessed with it.

'Influence', a Wiz Khalifa-assisted track, is another club-ready hit about being promiscuous (again) while being under the influence (again). Lyrically, it's a recurring theme for her but music wise, it's one of those tracks where you want to grind and writhe on the dance floor at 2.00am with your partner. It's damn hot.

Checkout: 'Cool Girl', 'Influence (feat. Wiz Khalifa)', 'True Disaster', 'Imaginary Friends', 'Vibes', and 'WTF Love Is'. 

In the end, what I'm trying to say it; Lady Wood may not be Lo's best album to date but it may provide her with enough hits to get us excited until the next album. Perhaps she can indulge us in a little more emotion than playing an ice-cold ecstasy pusher. Knowing her name is Elsa, it's pretty ironic, don't you think?