Written by: David Williams
Score 7.9/10
Bea Kristi, better known as Beabadoobee, has released her sophomore full-length LP Beatopia. Her debut critically acclaimed record Fake It Flowers was a guitar-driven homage to the late 90s/early 2000s alternative of yesteryear. The music was designed to be placed in the backdrop of any teen romantic comedy movie that came from the era in which the album was inspired, while the overall theme centered around teenage angst from within.
Thus with her new record Beatopia, her topics are more mature at their core while also getting the sense Kristi is more confident in herself—playing with new sounds and breaking out of her own self-made box of flashback alt-rock. A bossa nova-inspired track, “The Perfect Pair,” is a perfect example of Bea feeling more comfortable than ever in her own skin. This song has a cinematic feel while listening, giving images of the end of a James Bond film where he’s walking on the beach with a love interest after defeating all his enemies.
Kristi created this euphoric imaginary world of Beatopia at a young age when her family emigrated from the Philippines to London when she was 3 years old. Childhood trauma caused by a teacher involving her imagination resulted in her putting this abstract idea to the back of her mind, but now with her growth as a person, she’s able to accept the past to be able to gather a better future for herself.
But, with any type of experimental record for an up-and-coming artist, you need one glimpse of familiarity amongst supporters. A sort of comfort food for her fans came in the form of her lead single “Talk.” The catchy as ever chorus will be a favorite with her teenage fans paired with her trademark fuzzy guitars resulting in an addicting song from start to finish.
The warmly bright-sounding R&B track “Sunny day” is a standout on the record. A vintage early 2000s-influenced song about acting out with some close to you from seasonal depression being paired with dreamy vocals from Bea creates a sensory waterfall for the listener.
Trusting the people around you to carry out your vision is a sign of growth as an artist, and Bea has done that indeed, enlisting her guitar player Jacob Bugden more than ever with the instrumentation of the record as well as background vocals, like on the heavy guitar-laden track “Don’t get the deal,” which Jack Steadman of Bombay Bicycle Club fame helped co-write.
Photo Credit: Erika Kamano
Matt Healy from the English pop rock band The1975 contributed to two songs the first being intensely emotional “Pictures of Us.” The lyrics “She reminded me that God started with a capital letter” are completely open to interpretation for the fans to ponder while listening. The second song is the actual closer “You’re here that’s the thing” he wrote the flavorful bubblegummy chorus with the essence of the song serving as a sort of closing credit for the record.
Quarantine during the pandemic was a trying time for almost everyone around the world, and Bea was no different. Getting stir-crazy from being held up in her own bedroom, creating a symbolic fortress of solitude inspired the song “tinkerbell is overrated.” A track framing her boredom, constantly staying home by befriending spiders, painting pictures on her wall, and feeling younger than her actual age with her homebody lifestyle at the time. The record features another one of Kristi’s good friends, PinkPantheress, resulting in a sugary rush of energy and a playful melodic chorus that surely will get people out of their seats.
“Beatopia Cultsong” starts as a smokey mushroom cloud of psychedelia drifting off into outer space, but when the acoustic guitars kick in, the vibe transfers to a feeling of sitting around a summer campfire with friends making smores, and enjoying being around the ones closest to you on a hot, muggy night.
The sense of vulnerability, as well as growth, are at the front and center of the record. The violin beginning ballad, “Ripples,” is one of her most personal-sounding moments from the album, reflecting on developing as a person. Another example of leaving everything out on the table emotionally is the intimate “Lovesong,” contemplating the type of infatuation with a person that consumes your mind, making you forget who you are in the present.
As warm and bubbly as a couple of the songs sound “See You Soon” is the complete opposite. This is a cold winter ballad about “feelin’ blue,” not living up to expectations with a partner needing time to step away for their own personal self-development.
Photo Credit: Erika Kamano
The fun-filled cut “10:36” almost teleports you to another time with its grandiose, catchy hook about being afraid of being alone and just needing a warm body to hold. The lyrics are clever and cheeky also, with Jacob shredding on the guitar, making for one of the lighter, most enjoyable experiences on the record.
Bea’s willingness to collaborate with outside artists to refine her sound while also helping her branch out to other genres of music created a sonic stew of multi-layered records while also still keeping her own personal narration themes at the forefront will be one of the main takeaways from listeners.
Beabadoobee's second record displays a successful maturation in her sound and lyrical perspective. Beatopia is the time of imaginative record you can come back to, again and again.