A Look Into Kelsea Ballerini's 'Subject To Change':
Kelsea Ballerini just released her fourth studio album. It’s been an exciting journey for her from her debut till this moment. She’s shown growth from one record to the next, in every aspect of her craft. This record is no different as she delivers her most cohesive and focused record so far.
The album opens with the title track ‘Subject To Change’, it’s an upbeat moment that highlights life and how inconsistent things can be. That also includes herself as she says that she finds herself constantly changing whether that is to do with her appearance, style, moods or who she is. We hold on to an essence of who we are, however throughout life experience changes. It kickstarts the album with a perfect intro that lets you know you are in for an unexpected journey. ‘The Little Things’ serves as the follow up and on this one Kelsea shows appreciation for all the little things that many seem to bypass in a relationship in terms of the gestures made by their partners. It’s a lively track with its drum and guitar led production, you’ll surely find yourself lost in its groove as you sing along.
‘I Can’t Help Myself’ gives us a sassy country inspired moment and it’s a light track that you’d envision playing at a bar or a country themed event. She sings about not being able to say no to a little fun, even though she seems to want to avoid it. So far Kelsea isn’t letting you have a break, as this one will also keep you moving to it. Both the production and the vocal delivery assist in making you feel what she is putting across through the lyrics. Now the next track ‘If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too)’ is a head bopping tune about a loyal friendship. Here she declares that if one out of this friendship pair go down then the other will as well. They're in it together till the end, no matter what happens they’ll be there for each other. This also hosts that country twang, that follows the vibe of the previous track.
We move on to the mellow ‘Love Is A Cowboy’ that leaves you in your thoughts with its contemplative vibe. A beautiful western cinematic moment, that you get lost in. Here she compares love to a cowboy, where you can’t exactly tame it. However it’s an experience that feels wild and exhilarating. Kelsea’s vocals on this track are breathtaking and captivating. It is a track that makes you want to sit outside and watch the sunset as it plays in the background. By the end you feel like taking a deep breath and then letting it go. Then ‘Muscle Memory’ picks the pace back up again with its infectious groovy bass driven production and this one has been an instant fan favourite out of the unreleased tracks. She sings about how no matter what when they come back to each other everything comes back to them as though they’d never been apart. The verses have an emotional and longing feel to them, then the pre-chorus and chorus lift up the mood. The track closes with a revisit to the opening line providing it a full circle moment.
Kelsea immediately gets into ‘I Guess They Call It Falling’ as the track opens with the first half of the chorus. That in itself catches you by surprise and then she dives into the first verse. This moody track talks about jumping into love only to find that it isn’t all that it is made out to be. She uses the entirety of falling in love to depict how once love comes to an end you feel as though you are falling from a high. There is this fierceness that is put forward through her vocal with a hint of resentment for him letting her down. The song fills the entire space around you and you find yourself completely immersed in it. ‘Weather’ then lighters up the mood with its upbeat and catchy vibe. She uses the changing of the weather to depict how the person of interest seems to constantly be changing his mind.
Now we are given the most dreamy moment on the album with ‘Universe’ that just takes your breath away. This gentle track gets you feeling emotional as you are left mesmerised. She strips back the production and places her beautiful vocal at the front. On here Kelsea is completely in love and drawn to this person. You feel as though you are laying in the grass at night staring up at a star filled sky. She continues that gentle feel with ‘Walk In The Park’ that features a surprise opening. On this guitar driven track she sings about the challenges in a relationship, that it isn’t always going to be easy. She’s letting him know that he should expect a mixture of highs and lows. It’s another one of those contemplative moments and she slows it down in the end, closing off with a more faded version of the opening moment. ‘Heartfirst’ brings back the lively feel and has you moving your head to the beat of the kick drum. This blissful track is about jumping in heart first regardless of the potential of things going downhill. She’s fallen for this guy that she seems willing to bypass the red flags.
Kelsea invites over Carly Pearce and Kelly Clarkson to provide vocals on ‘You’re Drunk, Go Home’ which is the most prominent country track on the album. The trio seem to be feeling this guy who’s had a little too much to drink and is now being quite the pest. It’s a fun track that makes you feel as though you are at a rodeo. You feel like letting loose to this track and with company this would provide for such an enjoyable moment. The three make for quite the combination and Kelly’s what sounds like her saying ‘babe’ is a highlight of its own. ‘Doin’ My Best’ follows and changes the mood to a more reflective one as she looks over her life on this upbeat hand clapping and finger clicking tune. She sings about how she’s doing the best she can, she references moments from her past which draw your attention. The opening line to the second verse in particular will have your jaw drop. You find yourself completely taken by the chorus and then the bridges group sung vocal feels liberating. She brings the pace down for the final chorus and then builds it back up to close the track.
The second to last track is ‘Marilyn’ a self-written track that provides the album with its most vulnerable moment. It seems to continue on with what she explored on ‘Homecoming Queen’ and makes you really think on life and the choices we make. Here she sings about whether it is worth it in the end, putting on this front when underneath you are hiding all this pain. She uses Marilyn Monroe’s life as a way to depict that. The production fits perfectly with her vocal enhancing its emotive nature. It’s a heartbreaking and thought provoking track, and the lyrics make an even greater impact if you are aware of Marilyn’s life. She closes the track with a sample of Marilyn speaking. ‘What I Have’ is the album closer and this acoustic guitar driven track is one about being grateful with what she has. She looks at everything around her and comes to realise that she’s got all that she needs. She’s content with where she is at in life and that is all that matters. It’s the perfect note to end on.
Kelsea’s always been a writer who gets really personal in her songwriting and she doesn’t hold back here. She delivers a great album that depicts her life and who she is so well. The album is one that leaves an instant impression and takes you through a journey of a range of emotions. The album unintentionally seems to in places resonate with what she is currently going through in her life, even though she’d completed it prior to the divorce. You also feel the confidence she’s developed with her voice as she explores more of her vocal range on this record. Her team haven’t done a great job with the rollout, if they started out with better single choices and spaced them out correctly alongside the promotional singles, it surely would have debuted higher. There are so many perfect single options that they can still make use of and that in turn would help get the album more recognition. She definitely deserves more credit as an artist.
