Lizzy McAlpine’s New Album, “Angel,” Is Soft and Powerful, Sad and Hopeful, But Love Is The Common Denominator
Written by Hanna Nyberg
| Lizzy McAlpine’s return reflects not only her maturity as a musician, but also as a human who is coming to terms with grief, loss, and anger while still staying hopeful and cherishing the good around her.
Lizzy McAlpine, the queen of sad girl music, has returned with Angel, an album fueled by love. This album continues to build on McAlpine’s repertoire of gut-wrenching songs as she navigates life; whether it be the loss of love or the loss of a person, grief, connection, and everything in between, she shines a light on it all. After the release of this album, McAlpine wrote in her Instagram post, “Love is at the core of this album!!! Love for myself, my friends, my relationships, even love for past versions of myself and past lovers.”
“Light in the Painting” opens the album with a slow, soft, yet joyful sound as McAlpine describes the warm, inviting presence of her partner. Not only do the lyrics emanate the love she has for this person, but as the instrumentation grows over the course of the song, it feels as though you are experiencing what it must have been like for her to fall in love. I personally loved that McAlpine released this song as the first single because, although it is still very much her, I sense a shift in the maturity of the sound that has really drawn me, and others, in.
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In “Anybody’s fool,” McAlpine seems to be navigating the ups and downs of a breakup. She likes “the way it feels to not be anybody’s fool,” but when things are consistently reminding her of her ex, she feels herself being pulled back in towards them. You can feel the push and pull in both the lyrics and the music. A somber piano, a consistent static in the background, and even muffled conversations at certain points could represent her ex’s constant presence in the back of her mind.
The third song on the album is “A car wash and a new pair of pants.” At McAlpine’s Angel show in Los Angeles, she shared that she wrote this song “about the feeling of people only wanting to be close to you because of what you can give them,” something I think many popular artists have struggled with. This song has stronger vocals and a more upbeat tempo, backed by percussion and guitar. The bridge in this song is the point where you can really sense her residual anger as she sings, “I feel so used, lied to, betrayed. Who was I with? Where is his soul, his conscience? Always tried to keep fame as your mistress. I just loved you.”
“I have a friend” takes us into a space that is soft and sweet as it focuses on a current partner. This song is filled with visuals as she describes watching him talk on the phone, tune up his guitar, and play as she sings to him. You can feel the love in the way she sings this song, backed mostly by an acoustic guitar and piano. There are no lyrics sung in the last minute, only instruments and light humming, which I believe adds to the airiness and sweetness of this track. Something I love about this song is the repetition of “I have a friend, I have a lover.” It puts an emphasis on the importance of a romantic partner being not only your lover, but also your friend - something I believe is lacking in many love songs.
In “The moon,” McAlpine compares herself to the moon and her partner to the sun. She wishes she could be the one in control, but the pull that her partner has on her is too strong; she is “no freer than the moon.” You can feel the back and forth in this song as she sings about following a path and following a beat, but when she is around this person, she loses all control of herself and is at their will. There is a consistent beat in the song, especially in the moments when she is feeling in control, but the volume increases, and the beat intensifies when she sings about losing her freedom to this person. This track has a sexual theme to it, but it is difficult to tell whether she really wants to be with this person or whether she is being pulled back in purely a physical way.
“Ugly things” is a reminiscence of a past relationship where things began to slowly fall apart; they broke up, but she cannot let go of this person, regardless of that person doing “ugly things” post-breakup. She seems to think she still might be at fault as well, given an apology halfway through the song right before the volume of the track increases. This was the second single released before the album. In my opinion, it was a good choice to follow “Light in the painting” because it was very different in theme and feeling.
The second half of the album begins with “Soldier of the road (feat. Fleet Foxes),” and this track is political at heart. Soldiers of the Road represent civilians who work to keep this country going forward, who want some rest, and who are looking for love. However, the cycle continues, and those at the top keep control and bring darkness upon those below them. Many fans have begun using this song to make edits for The Hunger Games and Hadestown the Musical, two stories that focus on the perils of a wealthy and powerful upper class that uses others as cogs in the machine. Some fans have analyzed that this song may be about Lizzy’s experience of being a musician and others wanting her to continually put out music and perform live, which can lead to burnout. Additionally, Fleet Foxes’ musical influence on this song creates a folk sound that is different from McAlpine’s usual sound, but adds a depth that I believe is necessary to portray the themes of the track.
“Peach” is a simple, yet profound song as McAlpine describes something as small as cutting up a peach for herself. In her intro for this song in Los Angeles, she shared that this song was written shortly after her ex had moved out, she was beginning to see someone new, and she was living alone in her, newer home for the first time. She had a moment where she realized she had free will and if she wanted to go cut up a peach, she could; no one was stopping her. The vocals in this song build in intensity throughout the song, which is a great stylistic choice to show that step towards finding her independence and gaining control over herself again.
As someone who has multiple long-distance friends, including my best friend, “Over country” hit me right in the gut. McAlpine wrote this song when she was living in New York City while acting in the musical Floyd Collins, missing all of her friends and bandmates back in Los Angeles. This track is relatable to anyone who has experienced long-distance friendship and how hard it can be, but also how lovely the feeling is of knowing that you have someone who loves you “over time and space.” The acoustic sound of this song is perfect for portraying the care and love that she had for those friends while she was away.
“Two elevens” seamlessly blends the feelings of nostalgia and acceptance into one. She perfectly captures that feeling people sometimes get after a breakup when it has been a while, a picture or a text comes up reminding you of that person, and you remember the love you once had but not feeling any type of anger or resentment anymore. McAlpine’s melancholic and bittersweet lyrics and sound, which she has always done so well, shine in this song.
“Our strange ways” is a song about what-ifs, and it is the longest track on the album. McAlpine sings about a world where she never met her partner and never broke up with the person she was with before, which means she would never have fallen in love. She sings, “a world without you is not one I need to see, I need to have. I hate to think somewhere there is a world like that: a world without you.” There is a major key change to a lower key when the lyrics “a world without you” begin to repeat. Then, when you think the song is over, there is another minute of the song describing her waking up next to her partner, almost as if this world where she never met her partner was all in her dreams.
“Mason’s song” focuses on the experience of growing up and maturing alongside a close friend. McAlpine reflects on her past self and how she’s now a “better friend,” and how her friend sounds like himself again, maybe hinting toward past tensions in their relationship. Similar to the previous track, this song has repeated lyrics. In this one, she sings, “I can’t do it alone” ten times, showing just how much this friend’s presence is important and necessary to her well-being. During this repetition, there is an echo of the lyric, but it sounds like a male voice; could it be Mason?
In 2020, McAlpine’s father passed away, and since then, she has included a song dedicated to him on all of her albums. In this album, “The Crowd” focuses on McAlpine wishing she knew more about her father and got closer to him, but wanting to make him proud nonetheless. She makes everything she does “big so [he] can hear the crowd.” This song is backed by only a piano, allowing the listener to really focus on the lyrics, which I know was intentional for a song as impactful as this one.
The last song on this album, “Angel,” ends on a hopeful note as McAlpine has finally found someone who makes her feel safe, warm, and loved. This track and “Light in the painting” bookend the album on a positive and loving note. The lyrics are sweet, optimistic, and give us a glimpse into the day-to-day of her relationship with her partner. I feel so happy for her when I listen to this song because, as you can definitely tell through other songs of hers, she has gone through the ringer when it comes to romance.
In a recent interview with Vogue Magazine, McAlpine shared that while she worked on this album, she was listening to Joni Mitchell, Nick Drake, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and the music from Floyd Collins the musical. I can clearly hear all of those influences on this album. I also am left curious whether she will release any extra songs in the next year, but I know fans such as myself, always feel grateful for how much she allows us to go deep into her heart and mind. I could not recommend this album, and her other music enough.
About the Artist
Lizzy McAlpine is originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She studied at the Berklee College of Music in Boston before dropping out to focus on her career. Her original album Give Me A Minute was released in 2020, when she was only 20 years old. From there, her fame skyrocketed after the release of her single “Ceilings” off the second album five seconds flat. Her third album, Older, and its deluxe version, Older (and Wiser), came out in 2024 and 2025, and her career shifted from playing small venues to playing venues ranging from 3,000-6,000 people all over the US and Europe.
McAlpine is, I believe, one of the most profound modern-day musicians and lyricists. Her music is packed with raw emotion and sound, leaving listeners feeling sad, joyful, and curious what she will release next. McAlpine recently turned 27 (Happy Belated Birthday, Lizzy!), the same age as I am, and I think many people around our age find a great amount of comfort in her songs because we have certain shared experiences of the world.
McAlpine will be going on tour soon! The venues she will be playing in the U.S. recently teased an announcement that will be released on September 2, and it is looking like this tour will be an arena tour. If you would like to follow Lizzy McAlpine and get updates on her music, tour, and other releases, you can follow her on the social media accounts linked below!
Lizzy McAlpine
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