When I was a freshman in high school I really started to fall in love with pop music. Artists like Lorde and Billie Eilish showed me how it can be so much more than just what’s on the radio. Not long after, I discovered Troye Sivan who opened me up to a variety of different pop subgenres that I still adore today. Charli XCX with hyperpop and Magdalena Bay with synthpop just to name a few. Now nearly six years later, Sivan returns with his third studio album and reminds me why I fell in love with his music and pop as a whole.
“Something to Give Each Other” hones in on what I believe Sivan has always been capable of as an artist. Bringing in even more inspiration from his experimental contemporaries, this record feels like a throwback and a trendsetter simultaneously. Opener “Rush” is the perfect example of this, bringing in ’80s style group vocals with a booming house inspired synth line you could only hear in 2023. “What’s the Time Where You Are?” and “Honey” continue this vibe quite well with more house and breakbeat elements atop Sivan’s captivating voice.
Single “One of Your Girls” is a definite highlight. Sounding like it could be on Daft Punk’s “Random Access Memories,” Sivan describes this song as an “ode to the straight boy,” where straight is more or less in quotes. Then “In My Room” brings in a nice latin pop feel with help from Guitarricadelafuente.
The midpoint of the record is home to the ballads “Still Got It” and “Can’t Go Back, Baby.” Both work incredibly well in their own way, dealing with feelings of wanting to get over someone but there’s still that little part of you that’s holding on, thinking the spark could come back but it just won’t. “Still Got It” has a great use of organs while “Can’t Go Back, Baby” works in a somber, ascending piano melody. Both could be great additions to any heartbreak playlist.
This is where we get to the most contentious song on the record “Got Me Started.” The second single for the album has had fans divided ever since it released. If you were on the internet at all around 2016-2017, you’ll instantly recognize the song being sampled here. Sivan makes use of Bag Raiders’ song “Shooting Stars,” specifically the iconic synth melody that soundtracked countless memes last decade of people, cats, and any kind of object swirling around in space. Sure that may sound silly on the surface, but putting the memes aside, Sivan delivers one of the most invigorating pop bangers so far this year. The sample is incorporated perfectly into the song’s structure and cadence and makes it that much more playful and charismatic.
Speaking of silly, the next track “Silly” is an energetic, tongue and cheek electro-pop jam that acts as a great hook for the end of the record. “How to Stay with You” closes things on a bittersweet note. Produced by frequent Charli XCX and SOPHIE collaborator A.G. Cook, Sivan croons of a relationship on the rocks while layers of synths and horns make the track a triumphant send off.
“Something to Give Each Other” is a leap in the right direction for Sivan. Even if a few moments are still a bit on the safe side, the emphasis on more synth and electro-pop sounds is nothing short of irresistible. I only hope Sivan continues down this route and gets even more innovative.
My rating: 7.9/10
