Miley Cyrus - Endless Summer Vacation
Pop – March 10, 2023 – 12 songs, 39 mins
ROZ
This week TSR reviews the newest effort from pop culture superstar Miley Cyrus, her eighth studio album Endless Summer Vacation. I use the term ‘pop’ culture over ‘music’ as this extremely talented woman has been in our news cycles and on our TV screens for almost twenty years. With her fair share of rebrandings, controversies and accomplishments, she has undoubtedly burned herself into the psyches of millions around the world whether they like it or not. In saying this, TSR is here for the music and music alone - so let's get this thing started.
One aspect cannot be denied: Miley Cyrus has a damn good voice. Her talent is massive, and she has curated a team that's only purpose on this green earth is to spotlight that. Right out of the gate, I find myself digesting what will no doubt be the top radio hit of the summer in Flowers, a pop anthem that combines female empowerment with groovy drum patterns, slick basslines and Miley's signature rasp. Her team's masterful way of mixing Mileys traditional stylings with the current pop sound shines through on Jaded, as dreamy guitars chock full of vibrato and echo intersect with the beautiful hooks sung by the star of the show.
As each pass of the album zips by however, I notice that while the album never goes below a certain threshold (barring Island, which should have never gone to print), the listening experience as a whole leaves me looking for a certain word to describe it. While at the time I’m not so sure, I continue to de-construct each song on the list. I think back to the album's name and then ask myself; does this experience make me feel as though I’m on summer vacation? Better yet, does this album make me feel as though I’m on an endless summer vacation? The constant dipping of energy (through head-scratching production choices) speaks for itself. A few more passes go by and it suddenly hits me like a brick. If this album could be summed up in one word, that word would be: frustration.
Absolute, raw, untethered frustration. The biggest issue with this album is the fact that its potential is staring you right in the face in the form of upbeat, electro-inspired pop anthems that personify the album’s title without question. In Handstand, producer Maxx Morando intertwines a retrowave synthscape around Miley, immersing her in a warm fuzz and introducing a darker, digital element to her personality. River continues this trend as its Gaga-esque sensibilities and 303 acid bass sequences permeate throughout the track, once again adding a dance flavor to an otherwise back and forth album seemingly hurting itself in its own confusion. Violet Chemistry completes the trifecta; its synthesizer swells and bitcrusher-ravaged drums adding to the digital atmosphere even more and continuing to evolve Endless Summer Vacation into what its namesake describes itself as. Now, my question is… why did they stop here?
With a mainstream pop soundscape that is absolutely soaked in retro synth-pop influences, this is exactly where my frustration lies with Miley and her team of engineers, producers and songwriters. If the focus was shifted away from trying to squeeze anything and everything onto this album and instead dialed into taking its best parts and fleshing them out, we as listeners would have had a much more experimental, fresh and fun album on our hands. The potential was there - and that’s the saddest part. Endless Summer Vacation fails to capture the lightning in a bottle that turns a one time listen into a repeat. Enjoy its hits, check out tracks six through eight then leave the rest to fade away.
Overall Rating: 6.6/10
Favourite Song: Violet Chemistry
LUNDI
Too Sweet Reviews has grown immensely since the start of this venture and as we continue to sneak up on the 100 album review mark, this week feels like a milestone all on its own. We’ve celebrated a few musicians on multiple occasions but this review truly feels special as it’s the first time we’ve been around for a major artist’s complete album cycle. In December 2020 the youthful, exuberant, and middling review writing trio of TSR took on Mikey Cyrus’ Plastic Hearts. Two plus years later I couldn’t be more proud of our growth as we take on her follow up, Endless Summer Vacation.
While this process has highlighted the rise and bright future for our blog, Endless Summer Vacation is anything but a triumphant effort for Cyrus. It kills me to denounce Miley as I’ve gone to bat for her as the most talented pop star in the world, yet despite coming in at just over 40 minutes the album feels, well, endless. Expectation can certainly be a hell of a drug and this record is a prime example of title not matching the product. Vacation is anything but the powerful single girl album that lead hit Flowers hinted at. Instead it’s a look behind the curtain of a devastated woman who is trying to pick up the pieces from a failed relationship. Cyrus rarely displays the power and ferocity that normally accompanies her musics, trading the mean mugging in for a heartbroken core. It’s a commendable effort to put those direct feelings out to the world, but it’s so personal it never lets the listener in and ultimately requires you to be in a similar situation to fully grasp the impact.
In addition, the album is sorrow heavy in sonic arrangements with ballads making up the majority of the record and even when the album pushes the pace and the tracks are injected with more intensity there’s a lack of any boundary pushing direction or genre change ups. It’s overtly simplistic and leans on Miley to carry things without much support. Maybe it’s best that any great ideas weren’t used on what amounts to a coping mechanism Album but in the end of it all it just feels disheartening to critique something that’s so personal.
With that said we’ll end on the plus side which is Cyrus’ vocals. She is flawless start to finish with an incredible performance as always. She can go toe to toe with any female vocalist and be feared. Not only does she have the range to hit every note flawlessly, she also has the tricks up her sleeves to be more than just technically savvy. She oozes emotion with every note and has the knowledge to know exactly what type of vocal fits every situation best. Her flare and unique annunciations are unmatched with that pure raw vocal talent doing all the album heavy lifting. It’s certainly not a bad thing to lean on but the record is in need of a supporting cast. In the end ESV is a Miley record made for Miley, not for fans or the music industry at large.
Endless Summer Vacation is a cathartic release of heartbreak emotion that will give Miley Cyrus a blank slate for future work but it’s sonically bland despite otherworldly vocals.
Overall Rating: 6.0/10
Favourite Song: Wildcard
REID
On the tenth day of December 2020, TSR finished our sixth review but it was the first of a new release! The album was the latest from Miley Cyrus (Plastic Hearts (2020)). The write-ups were stored on a Microsoft Word file and kept private for the boys. Fast forward two years, three months, ninety-one reviews and she’s back with her eighth album. She wouldn’t even recognize us! I have been a bit of a TSR historian of late with these introduction throwbacks, enjoying the chronology as we approach the century mark. This one is a little extra special since all that time ago we were setting expectations. Now we get to see how Endless Summer Vacation follows it up.
Miley has been in the Hollywood spotlight since she was a little girl. While it may be par for the course at this stage of her career, it’s unquestionably more difficult when she’s struggling personally. Even if you wanted to look away, it’d be a challenge to be completely oblivious to details of her divorce with the virtual tabloids we hold in our hands all day.
‘Who would cheat on Miley?’
‘Is it true it was with Jennifer Lawrence while shooting The Hunger Games? Is Miley mocking her in the Flowers video?’
‘Will she get back with him?’
Can you imagine having to deal with that nonsense every day? No thanks. Miley handles it like a true professional. Or at least that’s how she lets on. The breakup album is an artform, providing the listener a deeper dive into the life of an artist. Miley and her team wrote one relatable song after another on Vacation with lyrics sung masterfully, suiting the mood of choice:
I’m better off on my own (Flowers)
Can we still make it work? (Rose Colored Lenses)
You f*cked up (Muddy Feet)
New love interests (You, Handstand, River, Wildcard)
Indecision and genuine heartache (Thousand Miles, Wonder Woman)
Unfortunately, that’s where the strengths end. Miley switched to Columbia Records after seven albums with RCA and the style change from Plastic Hearts (2020) is very noticeable. The pop rock side was swapped for a mix of pop, country/blues and synth pop. It’s a much more radio-friendly sound and may frequent the top of charts more often but when it comes to style, this collection of songs meanders aimlessly. Oftentimes diversity is viewed as a strength but the transitions are weak and the cohesiveness just isn’t there. The forty-six-minute run time suffers as a result.
Endless Summer Vacation is a subpar pop record propped up by a juicy Hollywood divorce and iconic voice. Other than a few cleverly written radio songs, Miley’s second break-up album in two and a half years lacks originality and feels directionless with its mix of genres.
Overall Rating: 6.0/10
Favourite Song: Violet Chemistry