Halsey
You Should Be Sad
Capitol/EMI
Just over a week after closing out Falls Festival, Halsey is already releasing new music. Clearly keeping herself busy, You Should Be Sad the name of the new single and accompanying music video. Sticking to her usual blend of emo and pop, fans can expect typical Halsey on You Should Be Sad.
Her latest track has a noticeable country twang, acoustic guitar picking threads through it and the drumbeat suits a hoedown. You should be Sad is a slow, pos-breakup track which feels like it could drop at several points but never really does. That said, the strums of heavily distorted guitar which introduce and end the chorus do provide a certain depth to the song.
The lyrics are brutally honest, the lines “I’m so glad I never ever had a baby with you,” and “You’re not half the man you think you are,” for example, from the chorus.
The accompanying music video is incredibly stylish but slightly out of step with the song. The video clip only really says one thing, that sex sells; not exactly a novel technique but it feels slightly misguided in conjunction with this gentler diss track. Halsey dances around a country rave and rides a horse naked. With lots of feverish dancing, fast paced cuts and menacing costumes, the video clip is perhaps bolder than the song asks for.
Halsey started writing music in 2012, getting famous for her talent in songwriting and her love for Harry Styles. Now a household name, and headlining major festivals, Halsey is coming out with her third album Manic, which will feature You Should be Sad this Friday, January 17.
EMMA PEET
