Happy holidays, everybody! For today’s review, I’ll be keeping it pretty brief, as I’m currently working on my top ten albums of the year list, and don’t really have the time to dedicate to a full review. I wasn’t even planning to review any albums this month, but I felt this one was worth at least mentioning, so let’s just jump right in.
Overall, Camila Cabello has delivered a very solid follow up to her 2018 debut, Camila. We hear more insanely infectious dance-pop songs with a Latin flair, such as “My Oh My,” “Señorita,” and “Liar,” as well as ballads that are sure to tug at the heart strings, including “This Love”and “First Man,” two of the best songs we’ve heard from Camila thus far. Camila set out to give listeners a cohesive look into the ups and downs of being in love, and for the most part achieves this goal.
The biggest pitfalls of Romance are the most glaring when the album is directly compared to Camila. Now that may not seem entirely fair, but this is how sophomore albums have always and will always be judged. While Camila clocks in at just barely over half an hour, this album has a fuller length, being well over 40 minutes. This works best when an artist expands their sound and shows more versatility, which Cabello hasn’t really done here. As I said earlier, we largely get more of the same. The difference being, now we have two or three virtually interchangeable versions of each song, whereas every song on Camila felt individually purposeful. None of these new songs are bad at all, but some certainly fall through the cracks. Apart from this, we get a few songs that very blatantly copy other popular artists such as Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift. With Cabello having such a distinct sound of her own, there really isn’t a point to this.
In terms of production, this album is much more polished and refined than Camila. And while on the surface, this seems like an improvement, I felt as though the stripped down instrumentation and minimally edited vocals on that album really allowed Cabello’s personality to shine through. Not a flaw so much as personal preference, but a point in favor of her debut album, nonetheless.
Overall, if you enjoyed Camila Cabello’s debut, chances are you’ll like Romance. For me, it doesn’t quite have the top-to-bottom replay value of the debut album, but the best moments more than justify the album’s existence. That being said, with the exceptions of a few really good songs, the qualities that make Cabello’s music so enjoyable aren’t quite as effective as they were on Camila. Romance isn’t a sophomore slump by any means, but it doesn’t quite live up to its predecessor either.
Score: 7/10
Favorite Song(s): This Love, First Man, My Oh My, Señorita
Least Favorite Song(s): Shameless, Living Proof
Phil Klinker Music Reviews 