It’s a challenge to top the fabulous and humorous success of a viral TikTok hit about blaming an ex. Nevertheless, The Beaches have crafted a clever way to do just that by evolving the narrative in the style of Charli XCX’s ‘Brat’ and Miley Cyrus’ ‘Flowers’—focusing on themes of partying, girl power, self-love, and… even more breakups!
As Jordan Miller, the band’s frontwoman and bassist, explains, their debut album, ‘Late Show’, released in 2017, was “a collection of the band’s experiences growing up in Toronto”—from their days performing in local bars under the name Done with Dolls. Their follow-up album, aptly titled ‘Blame My Ex’, reached new heights in the breakup genre, explored with both irony and cheer—essentially capturing the essence of adolescence through youthful losses and a corresponding rebirth, in the terms of J. D. Salinger. Their third release, ‘No Hard Feelings’, continues that coming-of-age theme, this time framed by nightlife and partying.
“I don’t really care what men think about our music,” Jordan states now, emphasizing that the album title signifies that any hard feelings should remain in the past. Yet, as is often the case, reality is much more complex. If Taylor Swift is still singing about forgetting her ex, then who are we to act as if we’re unshakable Black Widows? In the deceptively provocative track ‘Touch Myself’, Jordan sings, “But I’m scared to even touch myself / ‘Cause when I do, I think of you, oh-oh.” Even if a band has opened for The Rolling Stones twice and won five Juno Awards, the end of a relationship doesn’t heal instantly.
We can see all three albums as a coming-of-age trilogy, but ‘No Hard Feelings’ could also be interpreted as ‘Breakup LP Part II’. Along with the fun and the band’s more collaborative songwriting approach, Jordan continually reflects on memories of past trauma. This is evident in the melancholic, fragile ballad about a fictional fan named ‘Jocelyn’, who nearly sobs, “Everyone I thought I could trust in the world is a / Lost cause (Lost cause).” If ‘Blame My Ex’ was “about rediscovering yourself while grieving a relationship's end,” then ‘No Hard Feelings’ is focused on trying to navigate these challenges through shared anxieties and joys.
Thanks to the quartet’s effort to weave their narratives into one cohesive story, we now encounter even more exes—this time stemming from the experiences of keyboardist and guitarist Leandra Earl, drummer Eliza Enman-McDaniel, and guitarist Kylie Miller. The witty album opener, ‘Can I Call You in the Morning?’, portrays someone on the brink of loathing every friend of their partner while still asking if they can reach out. The playful and upbeat track ‘Did I Say Too Much’, drawing from Earl’s experiences as a recently out lesbian, places listeners in the position of dating girls who have boyfriends: “Even in the breakup, you can’t make your mind up,” Jordan laments.
‘Dirty Laundry’, which falls somewhere between The Smiths and The Cure, delves deeper into another dysfunctional family, “unhappy in its own way.” “Oh, what the fuck did you expect? / You’d cheat on me and I’d forget you,” Jordan cheerfully conveys her bandmate’s feelings. The punk-style ‘Wore You Better’ features a humorous chorus, “Now you have your boyfriend / Wearing my sweater / You can play pretend / But I wore you better.” However, the peak of The Beaches’ ironic lyrics surely lies in ‘Sorry For Your Loss’. “I was an open door / I should have closed it in your face,” Jordan sings with a mocking tone. “Please get well soon / If I left me, I’d be lovesick too,” she adds with a deadpan delivery over serious guitar segments reminiscent of Editors.
The highlight of the album—the two-part addictive tracks ‘Fine, Let’s Get Married’ and ‘Takes One to Know One’—is where Jordan’s past challenges and the band’s ongoing concerns find a natural resolution. She navigates new relationships with a “very complicated person.” “God, you’re a piece of work / Oh, takes one to know one,” they sing together in harmony. As seen with Charli XCX’s recent marriage to George Daniel, even those who embody the spirit of ‘Brat’ can end up tying the knot—and in the middle of the album, Jordan joyfully declares, “Fine, let’s get married!” in the upbeat title track.
In tandem with personal evolution, the girls have experienced noticeable sonic changes, departing from the raw mid-to-late 2000s indie sound of ‘Late Show’, which was produced by Emily Haines and James Shaw of
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It's challenging to create something even more fabulous and amusing after achieving viral success with a TikTok hit centered on blaming your ex. Nevertheless, The