SOCCER MOMMY: COLOR THEORY ALBUM REVIEW
Soccer Mommy’s lackadaisical, yet heavenly vocals have become her trademark since emerging in 2018 with her debut album, ‘Clean’. In her latest release, ‘Color Theory’, the same qualities help lend the album its haunting presence. Her soft voice clashes with tough topics, with each song scratching the surface of some of life’s harshest realities: mental health, illness and death.
Image Credit: Brian Ziff
Soccer Mommy, also known as Sophie Allison has subdivided ‘Color Theory’ into three chapters or colours. Its fascinating approach to album composition begins with the exploration of ‘blue’, signifying melancholy, depression and self-destruction. The lyrics in the opening track, ‘Bloodstream’, are the perfect example of this gradual chipping away at the mellow pop veneer. Lyrics like: “Now there’s a river runs red from my knuckles into the sink/And there’s a pale girl staring at the mirror through me,” induce intense empathy as you immerse yourself in this increasingly nightmarish and unsettling experience. Its sensitive, agonising imagery cuts through the lucid, wading atmosphere she’s created. The song ends with jittering, twitching guitar, creating the impression that the listener is overhearing a panic attack.
The second track, ‘Circle the Drain’ takes the ‘blue’ baton from ‘Bloodstream’, driving the theme forward. It begins with a not dissimilar riff to its predecessor, but quickly becomes its own song as Soccer Mommy coaxes the guitar and distortion pedal into sounding almost Middle Eastern. The lyrics however interweave with ‘Bloodstream’ as if the album is dwelling on the past; “Going round and round/ Circle the drain, I’m going down”. These lyrics from the chorus are a continuation of the first track’s sense of being consumed, devoured and swallowed up by her bathroom sink. Allison’s lyrics may seem initially basic, but the way she joins the dots between songs is powerful and immersive. It forces the listener to picture her withered and naked, facing a mirror and contemplating life and death. The song ends with white noise and the gurgling and burping of a sink.
The next colour is ‘yellow’, steering the album’s focus from mental to physical illness. The 22-year-old artist’s mother is terminally ill - something Allison has grown up knowing since her pre-teens. ‘Night Swimming’ seemingly initiates the yellow phase. The album already has a lucid, wading quality, but in this track, it hones in, comparing someone with illness to a sinking stone. She can see the stone as it glides down and out of sight, visible but dwindling and then gone altogether. Musically it feels like an interlude, but the poignancy of the song writing carries the tune and the listener into the vivid world she creates.
The album’s penultimate song ‘Gray Light’ addresses her dying mother directly. The purpose of the ‘gray’ chapter is to address her fears of death head on; no more swimming around the root of her trauma; she’s just a girl terrified of losing her mother. The track becomes more interesting as the song progresses, with what sounds like a heart monitor, used as percussion. The song gathers and meshes and then cuts all together; sudden, tragic and genuine.
‘Color Theory’ is bold and original from its story-book structure to its harrowing topic and honest sharp lines. The ending seems harsh, despondent and unfair. After exquisite storytelling and crisp imagery it’s easy to expect and even demand the Hollywood ending. In truth, its nature is closer to a Greek tragedy and even that is to miss the point. Although it may seem deflating, it’s the real-life story of a young woman whose terrified time with her mother is running out. The album doesn’t provide closure for the listener, but it gives the artist a chance to vent, which is both cathartic and beautiful in itself.