Initially I thought it was a pretty good new pop album from Miley. After I have been listening to a digital copy for a week now on an endless loop, I dare say it's a really great new pop album from Miley.
"Yeah, I can love me better than you can".
The album kicks off with the song everybody knows already: "Flowers". It is just the perfect irresistible mega pop hit. Obviously this is the stand-out track on the album, but if you give the album a little time, you'll find that there really isn't many weak tracks on it. Needless to say Miley still sings fantastic, but that hardly comes as a surprise.
If you compare the new album to her previous album "Plastic Hearts" [2020] that had a thick 1980s sound, the new album is not focused on one particular sound, but spans a lot of the different kinds of pop music Miley has released through-out her post Hannah Montana years. There's a bit of everything Miley on this album and it all blends and flows together perfectly.
"It's like you saw a unicorn, you don't understand
How I'm doin' what I'm doin' in a fucking handstand"
Some of the tracks like "Handstand" take several spins to open up because they may sound weird at first, but then they turn out to be really cool, once you let them in. Many of the tracks are however straight forward pop tunes that it's very easy to instantly fall in love with.
"You know I'm savage, but you're looking past it"
The song "You" is a fine track that we already knew from Miley's 2022 live album "ATTENTION: MILEY LIVE". It's very cool to get a studio version here.
The only songs I find a bit weak are "Wildcard" and the last song on the album "Wonder Woman". They are not awful or anything, I just don't think that they are quite on par with the rest of the album. Maybe it would have been better to let the album end with "Island" that certainly has that summer vacation feel to it.
Miley rarely disappoints and it is certainly not the case with her new album. I'm going to be playing this album many times in the years to come. It's a really great thing that at least not all new pop music suck.
If you want to hear more about the songs, I highly recommend the Disney+ Miley special "Endless Summer Vacation (Backyard Sessions)". Miley and her band perform live versions of a selection of songs from her new album, including a kick-ass thundering version of her old hit "The Climb". Between the songs she explains what inspired the lyrics.
Rating: 
Band: Miley Cyrus
Record Title: Endless Summer Vacation
This Release: 2023
Record Format: LP
Record Label: Columbia
Extra Info:
- The vinyl is available in different colors. It is gatefold and includes poster with lyrics and photo booklet.
- The digital versions have a bonus demo version of "Flowers". It's not essential, so it makes sense they didn't include it on the vinyl version.
TrackList:
"Endless Summer Vacation" Album:
- Flowers
- Jaded
- Rose Colored Lenses
- Thousand Miles (feat. Brandi Carlile)
- You
- Handstand
- River
- Violet Chemistry
- Muddy Feet (feat. Sia)
- Wildcard
- Island
- Wonder Woman
- Flowers (Demo) *
*digital versions only
Disney+ Miley special "Endless Summer Vacation (Backyard Sessions)":
- Jaded
- Rose Colored Lenses
- Thousand Miles
- Wildcard
- Island
- Wonder Woman
- The Climb
- River
- Flowers
Content Type: Record Review
Language: 
Updated: 2023-03-16 20:14
Created: 2023-03-16 19:32
