Canadian pop star, Tate McRae, has once again wowed her fans after dropping her third studio album “So Close To What” on Friday, Feb. 21. McRae’s career has really taken off, with her popularity growing at an exponential rate over the past two years. This album truly does justice to her praise. While continuing to take inspiration and influence from early 2000s stars such as Brittany Spears and Nelly Furtado, McRae’s “So Close To What” still contrasts from prior pieces due to its happier focus and advanced incorporation of voice layering, displaying the artist’s versatility and undeniable talent.
It’s safe to say that people’s favorite pop hits come from the 1990s and early 2000s, with newer styles of music not being able to replicate the era of absolute bangers. But unlike other current artists, McRae has developed a sense of charisma, confidence and boldness that replicates the exclusive and untouchable group of iconic 2000s pop bangers. Fans have already started making an array of mashups between the album’s single “Sports Car” and The Pussycat Dolls’ banger “Buttons,” showing just how cohesive the album is with people’s favorite 2000s hits.

However, not all of the album is replicative of upbeat 2000s hits, displaying McRae’s artistic versatility and range. McRae gorgeously executes fun and bold songs such as “bloodonmyhands” and “2 hands,” while simultaneously making room for slower and more meaningful songs such as “Nostalgia”. Stretching McRae’s artistic spectrum and demonstrating her diverse abilities and talents, the album’s variety shows just why McRae fans ride so hard for her.
“I really enjoyed how most of the songs are very fast paced and have a lot of emotion,” senior Alexa Buss said. “I think it’s a great album to end the winter with.”Only being in the music industry for eight years, her work is bound to contain some flaws, especially when it comes to experimenting with new vocal styles and methods.
Despite the many positives the album contains, some are still critical of the clarity and depth of specific contents and parts of the song. When working on the album, McRae took a risk in exploring a new method of developing a sense of depth in her sound.
“I really wanted a lot of vocal layering throughout the album, which I feel like I’ve never done. McRae said in a podcast interview with Jake Shane. “I’ve always done just one straight vocal pass and that’s it. It feels like a mix of really hard production and really airy vocals.”
But despite her intentions of developing a more full sound and adding emphasis onto particular parts of each song, some listeners claim that her efforts only added a murkiness to the sound. In some instances, such as the chorus of “Revolving Door,” this proves to be true, making it difficult for some to understand what exactly she’s saying. But despite these flaws, there are also many parts of the album, like the bridge of “Dear god,” where the layering of McRae’s vocals comes out beautifully, satisfying listeners and really hooking them onto the song.
When evaluating “So Close To What,” it’s important to consider that McRae is a young artist who’s only released a total of three complete albums. Only being in the music industry for eight years, her work is bound to contain some flaws, especially when it comes to experimenting with new vocal styles and methods. “So Close To What” is a phenomenal album, allowing McRae to further develop her artistic style and mood while giving her space to improve and eventually meet her full potential.
“I only started listening to Tate McRae recently and can already see that her work is getting better over time,” junior Natalie Finn said. “I initially wasn’t obsessed with the album but after giving it a couple of listens it’s starting to grow on me. I think she’s really growing as an artist and I’m excited to see what’s to come.”