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Broken Hearts Club Album | Jak Rāta
Syd. That’s the review. Nah but if you haven’t had the joy of listening to Syd belt out some tunes, then I don’t really know what to tell you my friends. She basically takes everything you love about R&B and makes it softer with some vocals that just melt straight through your soul into your core. But I’m jumping ahead of myself already and I shouldn’t just throw you into the deep end before explaining why this may be my favourite album of the year (so far).
100% ‘CYBAH.’ A collaboration with Louisiana singer Lucky Daye, the song captures the anxious, jittery feelings of first being in love and the uneasiness of being vulnerable with another person. But this raises the main point of the album, right? The idea of falling in love and how that’s so anxiety-inducing. But it’s not the typical “woe is me / my life sucks / I want to die” type beat that you’re used to. This juxtaposes sadness in love and upbeat tracks that have you bopping and fucking with the sound.
Syd, aka Syd Tha Kyd, is not new to the scene with tracks blessing our ears since 2018. Without making this a biography, I want you to realise my bias as my love for her runs DEEP. I have my favourite songs and I also have some shit that I don’t really fuck with but having healthy dislikes within your favourite artists is important. What I’m saying is, it’s okay to not like everything that an artist puts out (looking at you Miley and her Dead Petz). But the honest truth is that Lonely Hearts club struggles to have a bad track.
Versatility and dimension is at the core of the tracklist, from the bright and breezy ‘Right Track’ to the turbulent ‘BMHWDY,’ where Syd croons over the sudden turn in her relationship. This entire album is a testament to heartbreak, with her experiencing her first and seemingly volatile end to a turbulent relationship. You can listen to her story told through interludes and an impressive blend of vocals within the spoken word sections that tug on your heart strings. The hold that Syd is gaining over the R&B folks is disconcerting and I’m certain the general audiences will start to realise her greatness – or some cunt on tiktok will use the sound and blow her up.
Broken Hearts Club is never one sound. It’s never just the same beat with differing vocals. It’s diverse, with sounds that saunter from light, tenderhearted songs to raw, gritty ballads that centre moments of doubt and mistrust. True to its title, Syd has said the album is about her first real heartbreak, and many songs are tinged with that bittersweet aftershock.
Overall, you’re all sleeping on Syd. I’m not here to thrust shit down your throat, but if you’re a pop girlie or if you just fuck with top 40 – it’s time to branch out on your own and find music that you fuck with and makes you feel like shaking your ass or chilling in bed.
“If I ever make you mine, need to know if you’re the type / do me wrong or do me right,” Syd sings in the opening bars of opening track
30 N.07 / V. 55
Choice Cuts: "CYBAH (feat. Lucky Daye)," "Fast Car," "Control," "Out Loud (feat. Kehlani)," "Heartfelt Freestyle"
