2/10
A year since her somewhat successful last studio album, Something Beautiful, Miley Cyrus has returned to the industry with a synth-based album and a new name—it’s just Miley now. While even her name makes Bass Persuades an anticipated release, it quite literally does not meet any of Cyrus’ high standards.
The first track on the album, “Bass Persuades”, is a synth-heavy dance-pop track that explores the theme of putting down phones in order to go partying. This message, “going partying,” is repeated throughout the entire song. The chorus literally is “The kids don’t wanna dance / the kids don’t wanna dance,” over and over. Based on its heavy presence in the title track, you would think freedom from technology is one of the album’s major themes. But it’s not. The idea only appears on this track, making it an odd thematic moment compared to the other songs on this album.
“Let’s Get Married” and “Orbit”, the third and fourth tracks on the album, seem to hone in on the album’s actual focus: romance. Romance seems to be the most encompassing feeling in Cyrus’ life, sprouting from her recent successful engagement with her partner, Maxx Morando. Both tracks focus on Cyrus’ newfound era of peace, one where she is finally free from a series of tumultuous exes. These romantic tracks are the only ones with a softer sound: their instrumentals are accompanied by piano and gentle drums rather than the loud bass and scratchy percussion on the rest of the album. “And we don’t have to touch / Cause close is close enough,” she sings in “Orbit.” Morando seemingly is someone who Cyrus harbors such an affection that just being in his presence is enough to make her content.
In “Let’s Get Married,” Cyrus revisits this idea of being content with the mundane when it comes with the right person. “Let’s turn the rest of our lives to a holiday / Anytime, anyplace, we can run away.” While these tracks may be thematically cleaner than the clutter of genres on the rest of the album, they are quite far from being a saving grace.
Two songs on Bass Persuades feature different collaborators. Those are “Different Religion” with rock band Model/Actriz and “Neon Signs” with Andrew Wyatt, the lead vocalist of electronic pop group Miike Snow. Neither of these features adds anything to their tracks. In fact, they basically make the songs worse. Model/Actriz’s deep raspy background vocals are supposed to come off as exuding some sort of dark masculinity, but instead they feel comical; it’s a lot of alpha-male TikTok energy.
Wyatt’s features aren’t much better. Most of the song consists of “artistic” whispers and background moans. But Cyrus isn’t any better. Much of “Neon Signs” has Cyrus sounding God-awful. Her vocals aren’t even breathy. They’re more like a series of dragged-out sighs. Toward the middle, both Cyrus and Wyatt have a quick back and forth, both voices speaking in comical out-of-breath moans about their adoration for each other. “You’re so beautiful / Some people say I’m just ,” Both Cyrus and Wyatt sing. “You’re perfect / So perfect.” They keep repeating this line over and over. It literally makes your skin crawl.
On “REDLIGHTS,” Cyrus makes her way back to romance, but now it’s in a new light. This time, Cyrus speaks about a euphoric devotion. “Cause I have something to believe in, and baby you’re the reason,” Cyrus sings, describing her romantic relationship as her anchor. “Cause anywhere you go, I will also go,” she sings, enforcing this theme of unwavering loyalty. Yet, the song’s heavy focus on this devotion makes the message sound less genuine and more overly sentimental.
One of Bass Persuades‘ major flaws is Cyrus’s mediocre singing. While not every song needs to be pure vocal experimentation, her vocals are forgettable, sinking into the background as the instrumentals overpower all singing. Throughout the album, each song is masked by voice effects, making Cyrus, who has one of the most interesting voices in pop music, sound generic and unoriginal. Sure, she’s trying something new, but that doesn’t give her the excuse to release such predictable and uninspired music
It is clear what Cyrus is trying to accomplish on Bass Persuades: she’s trying to establish a new sound. And while that goal is admirable, her execution of it has created an album that is practically unlistenable. I’m not persuaded.
