Sigrid – How to Let Go

In your early twenties, you’re holding onto a lot of stuff. Family values. Shards of heartbreak. Literal baggage from your parents' house. On her second album, Norwegian songwriter Sigrid is learning to let go of that stuff, leaving behind provincial port town life to embrace the bright lights of pop superstardom.

Winner of the 2018 BBC Sound Of poll, the 25-year-old songwriter racked up rave reviews for Sucker Punch the following year. But unlike fellow Nordic peer AURORA, How to Let Go isn’t a collection of Mother Earth cries. This record positions Sigrid as an alumna of fellow chart-topper Dua Lipa (A Driver Saved My Night) or even wannabe rock 'n' roller Miley Cyrus in the lamenting guitar solo in Mistake Like You.

Thank Me Later and Burning Bridges both wade through the sentiment of leaving on a high rather than trying to scale a sinking ship. While feel-good anthem Mirror is the body confidence balm we all need a dash of this summer. The record isn’t all righteous pop bangers though. There are some tear-jerking numbers that even Adele would be proud of (see: Last To Know and High Note).

The outlier of the record appears in Bad Life – a duet with Bring Me the Horizon frontman Oli Sykes. It’s an emo-heavy ballad that will probably lure a whole new fanbase to the Scandi songwriter. But if they come for the crooning, here’s hoping they stay for the full length. They can thank me later.

Listen to: Thank Me Later, A Driver Saved My Night, Mirror