Let's get this out of the way early: Violet Grohl knows. She knows what her last name connotes, what you're likely going to call her because of it, and your thoughts on her releasing a major-label debut a couple of months after turning 20. For someone who has seemingly had it so easy, the young singer-songwriter is up against it before she's even stepped up to the microphone. That's the beauty of Be Sweet to Me, though — it feels almost combative by design, as if done solely to prove people wrong. Not only that, but she may well have forged the year's most impressive debut album yet.A lot of things jump out at you across the record's 32-minute runtime. Chief among them are Grohl's vocals, which possess both drollness and tenderness in equal measure. Trainspotters will be quick to parallel the chorus of "Bug in the Cake" to Nirvana's "Sliver" both lyrically and melodically, but it's the sweet-and-sour vocal duality throughout that asserts Grohl's individuality and promptly drives the jangly rocker. By contrast, the impact of an artist like Billie Eilish (who, believe it or not, is five years older than Grohl) feels prominent on stark album closer "Plastic Couch," with a quivering and intimate delivery that parallels more tender moments like "Your Power" and "No Time to Die." In both instances, it's not so much about the presence of bigger influences; rather, it's what Grohl does with them — that is, adapt and evolve them into idiosyncrasy.The sonic versatility is also a key strength of Be Sweet to Me, reflecting an eclectic taste and the kind of widescreen ambition that belies Grohl's age. It comes in collaboration with producer Justin Raisen, who knows a thing or two about being the right-hand man for bold women with even bolder artistic visions, having previously worked with Charli xcx, Angel Olsen, Sky Ferreira and Kim Gordon. Opener "THUM" gear-shifts between fuzzed-out riffs and dreamy, reverb-heavy arpeggios, while "Often Others" packs an absolute wallop with down-tuned guitars that sound like they're straight out of the Desert Sessions. Neither sounds out of place, either — in fact, it's shockingly cohesive.With Be Sweet to Me, Violet Grohl has shifted the weight of expectation with the expertise of a powerlifter. Outrunning a long-cast shadow, she's proven why she deserves your attention.
Wavelength
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