“Unique, strong and sexy.” These three adjectives define exactly what Beyoncé wants you to feel and experience on her bold and expressive new album “RENAISSANCE,” her seventh solo project.
“RENAISSANCE” is yet another example of one of music’s biggest megastars switching it up and honing into a house/dance-heavy style following the release of Drake’s “Honestly, Nevermind” earlier this summer. Coming six years after her momentous album “Lemonade,” this new installment of her discography was truly worth the wait, to say the least. While trying her hand in a whole new frontier of sound and influences across the project’s 16 tracks, she is as charismatic, confident and unapologetic as ever.
The opening track, “I’M THAT GIRL,” gives the listener all the proper elements needed to get a taste of what the rest of the project has in store. The track almost feels like a brainstorm, a spread-out array of different ideas meshed together, including some slick synth lines, bouncy drum beats and distorted vocal chops that back the instrumental. While the track isn’t fully structured and fleshed out like the rest of the tracklist, it serves its intro-like purpose to let you know that this, indeed, is more or less a house record.
Beyoncé wants you to embrace your self love and feel in a safe place while listening to this album, and for that message, “COZY” is the theme song. An anthem of self-empowerment and unapologetic confidence, the track radiates a bumping energy with a catchy rhythm and flow that will surely get you moving. Beyoncé is as true to herself as she wants you to be — “Comfortable in my skin / Cozy with who I am.”
These self-assured themes also shine on “ALIEN SUPERSTAR,” celebrating the value of uniqueness, a feeling you get from the song title alone. While there are a few awkward moments in the delivery of the verses, the track builds up at the chorus with additional spacey synths and dreamy vocals. The main highlight of the track comes in at the end. The outro transcends into other-worldly synths and high-flying vocal harmonies that sound like you exceeded the stratosphere.
The heavy showcase of dance influences veer into bona fide disco on the album’s fourth track, “CUFF IT.” Plucky strings, warm brass sections, Nile Rodgers’ iconic chucking guitar style and airy vocals all come together to make you feel like you just stepped into a modern-day discotheque. One of the smoother tracks, it brings new life to a lost genre with nods to all the retro qualities of classic disco records.
On the subject of album highlights, “BREAK MY SOUL,” the lead single, embodies everything you would ever want in a house record. Sampling Robin S.’s 1990 house cut “Show Me Love” and Big Freedia’s “Explode,” the song rides on bouncy synth chops and quick piano stabs backed by an energetic four-on-the-floor house beat with the ultimate loopable quality. I heard this track once and I knew this will be talked about and in frequent rotation for years to come. An instant classic, if you will.
Following the high of “BREAK MY SOUL” comes the one track I truly did not enjoy from this project — “CHURCH GIRL.” The first 20 seconds show great promise for what seems to be a soulful, gospel-inspired ballad, but then out of nowhere comes the hard-hitting trap beat drop, which feels out of place and unnatural. The random and unnecessary interruption of full-fledged trap disrupts the flow of the dance style the rest of the album displays. If she wanted to mix in a song that leaned toward rap, I think she should have done it a little more subtly.
The tracklist quickly bounces back with the smooth and funky vibe in “PLASTIC OFF THE SOFA,” which features glossy production that blends elements of laid-back dance, R&B and neo-soul, as well as an entrancing vocal performance across the track with a soft and sweet feeling.
“VIRGO’S GROOVE” glimmers with an addictive, upbeat energy that could last forever. Its funky grooves and soaring vocal melodies take its dance roots to new heights and elevates the tracklist. It’s the kind of song that makes its six-minute run time feel short. The momentum pushes on forcefully with the West African-influenced “MOVE,” containing a growling bass, playful beats and fiery vocal chants. This track seems to bring just the right mood at just the right time, fulfilling the aggressive yet catchy vibe we needed, something that “CHURCH GIRL” attempted but felt slightly off the mark.
Beyoncé continues to switch the energy and hone in on various styles within the dance world, as seen in the island-scented “HEATED.” This track flows with catchy lyrics and contains tight production but still has a loose, free feeling with her breathy harmonies and open song structure.
Towards the end of the tracklist, you still experience new sounds and experimental moments that push the album forward. “ALL UP IN YOUR MIND” delivers a unique, futuristic approach to bring dance and pop together. Showcasing intricate layers of synth and bass, Beyoncé brings a memorable melody that rides across most of the song, but at times I was hoping the track could further develop beyond the one-sided direction it went.
“PURE/HONEY” incorporates one of the more intriguing song structures on the album, switching back and forth between its “PURE” and “HONEY” counterparts. The first half presents a menacing vibe with a fierce bassline and a stripped-back production style, while the second half flips in the opposite direction with glowing vocal harmonies and a vibrant, lighthearted feeling.
To end the album with a bang, Beyoncé spins her own contemporary rendition of Donna Summer’s iconic disco classic “I Feel Love” with “SUMMER RENAISSANCE.” An album that has already proved to honor so many innovators of the dance genre, what better way to conclude the project than a tribute to the “Queen of Disco” herself? A choppy, pitched-down synth melody deriving from the aforementioned sample serves as the backbone to this forward-thinking remix, which also includes additional synth lines, guitar plucks, creative percussion and expansive vocal leads. Every element of the track builds up and comes together seamlessly, almost as a sum up of what the album was trying to accomplish.
Brimming with contagious joy, “RENAISSANCE” is a celebration of freedom, happiness and individuality that displays endless musical inspiration by paying homage to all ends of the dance spectrum. A high level of cohesion creates a very holistic album experience, and the music was truly intoxicating. With time this could easily become a legacy-defining moment for the queen, and it just might become my new favorite Bey project.