I last reviewed Katy Perry’s recently released album Smile. To sum it up, the track sounded like it was stuck within her glorious moments of fame ten years ago when she released some of her most iconic songs, like “Firework” and “Teenage Dream.” Therefore, in my opinion, I feel like her new song list reveals that she’s still still fantasizing over the climax of her career back in 2010. I was not a fan; Smile’s songs were overall mediocre and flat. 

Enough about Katy Perry, though. Let’s discuss Ava Max’s new and coincidentally similar album.

You may be familiar with Max’s hit song “Sweet But Psycho,” that was previously released in 2018. In fact, I still hear it on the radio today while surpassing a billion Spotify streams. Her newly released album, Heaven & Hell, contains tracks that sound exactly like “Sweet But Psycho.”

Is that really a good thing?

One of the fifteen songs titled “OMG What’s Happening,” is one of the main tracks that confirmed my disliking of Heaven & Hell. It sounds like a theme song for a Barbie show rather than a song belonging in 2020. There are countless amazing, talented artists in the pop industry, so when a pop star releases an album with songs all sounding like this specific one, it stands no match to make it onto the top charts in the U.S. 

Yet another song that did not excel my standards was “Who’s Laughing Now.” The chorus sings “Ha ha ha ha, ha ha ha, who’s laughing now?” I believe that the chorus of a song is supposed to be the best part, the climax, the part where you sing it out your car windows while driving on the highway. However, Max’s chorus includes unenthusiastically laughing and singing a two-letter-word. This most certainly did not satisfy my high expectations of song choruses.

The originality, on the other hand, is nowhere near present. All the songs maintain the same boring, cheesy 2000’s tunes that contain absolutely no climax. It oddly and unfortunately reminds me of Perry’s album in which I referenced further back. I would not be surprised if Max used Perry’s album for inspiration based on the lack of creativity.

Max’s album is not only basic, but extremely repetitive. Every time I click a new song, I get the strange feeling of deja vu. Max did not impress me at all whatsoever with this album; I had higher expectations set after listening and loving  “Sweet But Psycho.” Considering that single has hit phenomenal streaming numbers since it was dropped two years ago, I was eager to see what more Max had in store for her audience. In the future, I’m hoping Max showcases her true potential rather than her unoriginality.