These contradicting words will fly around your mind across the 12 songs and 37 minutes 31 seconds of this album. The lyrics will drag you down with their melancholy content only for the backing track to pull you right back up and out of you chair into a dancing mood. It truly is an entertaining rollercoaster that I couldn’t recommend enough.
‘It Gets Dark’ begins the album and sets the tone for the rest of the songs. Perhaps leaning more towards the sad than the salutations, it is a gentle introduction to Sigrid’s work with a slow opening that pulls you in before seamless transitions between that and a more upbeat backing track. This back and forth between vibes is prevalent throughout the entire album, and not just within the individual songs. Some of the songs maintain a more sombre tone while others embrace a more excitable atmosphere.
At times it can be frustrating that the tone is not consistent with no apparent commitment to happiness or sadness. It feels like two distinctive albums fighting for supremacy. You cannot expect a chill, sombre time without also dealing with the reciprocal which can be exhausting. Yet despite this collision of tones, nothing ever feels messy, and if it does, that feels like a conscious decision. The two are blended extremely well to create an entertaining experience.
‘Mirror’ felt like a divergence from this theme though. It fully commits to those positive vibes in both lyrics and backing track. A dancefloor song if there ever was one, this one is all about self-love that makes both your mouth and feet smile. My only wish was that this upbeat was the final song rather than a midpoint. Right after it, there is a sharp drop back into melancholy with ‘Last To Know’ that was just a bit too jarring.
Overall though, How To Let Go is a triumph that represents the complicated highs and lows of day-to-day life with a great blend of good vibes and mournful times.
Rating: 4/5
