Twenty years after she crashed onto the scene with her first album Let Go, Avril Lavigne has returned as rightful heir to the throne of pop-punk with her seventh album Love Sux.
As brash and unapologetic as ever, Lavigne sets out for revenge on ex-lovers – ‘not another break up, when I think of you I just wanna throw up’ – like she’s never been away. There’s no need for Lavigne to follow the musical trends of Olivia Rodrigo and Billie Eilish when she created them in the first place. Like slipping into an old pair of Vans, Lavigne retraces her skate-punk footsteps, effortlessly recapturing that cool-girl brattiness that gave her such legendary status.
Love Sux opens with a fervent sense of purpose: a forceful guitar intro paired with frenzied shouts from the Canadian singer characterises opener ‘Cannonball’. It is evident with just the first song alone the 37-year-old’s formidable energy hasn’t dulled; overflowing with youthful vigour, the song is a fast-paced entry to the album.
With less than a second to recover from such energy, another of Lavigne’s staple drum intros kick in. Featuring the infamous Machine Gun Kelly, ‘Bois Lie’ is a mess of a brash melody and pragmatic lyrics, creating a (borderline) cheesy song – ‘Bois lie, I can too, revenge is my sweet tooth, the girls cry and so will you’. It’s safe to say this isn’t an album that requires its metaphors to be unpicked – it’s one to blast through the speakers like it’s 2002.
Perhaps sticking a little too close to her early 00’s roots, Lavigne still uses her characteristic ‘Sk8er Boi’ text speak and maximalist writing style throughout the album, rhyming ‘asshole’ with ‘castle’ in ‘Déjà vu’. But it’s the simplicity and catchiness of her songs that allows her to create such head-banging, air-drumming Avril anthems.
Arguably the best song on the album, ‘Bite Me’ could have easily fallen out of Lavigne’s 2007 album The Best Damn Thing. Despite maintaining her signature sound, the lyrics show how she has left her callow youth behind, whilst the familiar punk pop chord changes and drum solos create an ordered anarchy to the song.
At just 33 minutes long, Love Sux is a high-intensity, sing-along album you most definitely wouldn’t want to pick a fight with.
Rating: 4/5
