“The Great Impersonator” marks the most significant and ambitious sonic chapter of her musical journey for Halsey.
Released during a time of personal challenges, marked by health issues, a separation and the termination of a recording contract, the album is both a reflection on his past and an in-depth exploration of his current circumstances.
An hour of music that almost becomes an artifact of someone who isn't sure he'll live to make another record. Eighteen songs full of reflections that start from the early days of his career, pass through the whirlwind that followed and culminate in the existential wisdom that emerges when one feels close to death.
Halsey's resilience and emotional vulnerability are at the heart of the lyrical framework as she tackles weighty themes such as mortality, abandonment and mental illness. Halsey alternates moments of sadness and introspection with moments of lightness, which lighten the emotional load.
Musically, Halsey draws directly from her greatest sources of inspiration. Each song is a sort of homage to another performer, filtered through her writing style. It ranges from the late '60s to the early 2000s. Throughout the album, you can hear references to Dolly Parton (“Hometown”), Fleetwood Mac of the '70s (“Panic Attack”), Bruce Springsteen of the 80s (“Letter to God (1983)”), Oasis, Third Eye Blind (“Ego”), Portishead (“Arsonist”) and Björk (“The Great Impersonator”) of the 90s, up to references from 2000 that they range from Britney Spears (“Lucky”) to Deftones (“Lonely is the Muse”) to the Postal Service.
In a world where authenticity often seems sacrificed on the altar of commercialization, “The Great Impersonator” emerges as an act of artistic courage.
Halsey not only celebrates her influences and interprets them in a chameleonic way but invites us to reflect on our own identity and on the meaning of the crisis and the darkest moments of life using music as a beacon of hope and future.
SCORE: 7.50
Only Living Girl in LA – Rating 7.00
Ego – Rating 7.50
Dog Years – Rating 7.75
Letter to God (1974) – Rating 7.50
Panic Attack – Rating 8.00
The End – Rating 7.00
I Believe in Magic – Rating 7.00
Letter to God (1983) – Rating 7.50
Hometown – Rating 7.00
I Never Loved You – Rating 7.00
Darwinism – Rating 7.00
Lonely is the Muse – Rating 7.00
Arsonist – Rating 7.75
Life of the Spider (Draft) – Rating 7.50
Hurt Feelings – Rating 7.50
Lucky – Rating 7.50
Letter to God (1998) – Rating 7.50
The Great Impersonator – Rating 8.00
THE VOTES OF OTHERS
Nme – Rating 10.00
Variety – Rating 9.30
Kerrang! – Rating 8.00
The New York Times – Rating 8.00
Rolling Stone – Rating 8.00
TO LISTEN NOW
Panic Attack – Arsonist – The Great Impersonator
TO BE SKIPPED IMMEDIATELY
Nothing. It works well and accompanies you while listening
