After a four year hiatus, Lorde released her album “Solar Power” on Aug. 20, 2021. Lorde did some experimenting with her sound, by making the first released song “Solar Power,” which has a more pop sound. Lorde rose to fame with her angsty songs like “Royals,” “Ribs,” and “Team.” This release made many fans have different theories about the album. Some assumed that Lorde was going to make this album an upbeat album for the summer. While some thought that this album was going to be a commentary on climate change since she took a trip to Antarctica to learn more about climate issues. When she released the song “Mood Ring,” Lorde discussed toxic positivity and how people will try to distract themselves as a way to cope with hardships. This started giving mixed signals on the theme of the album since it appeared to be more angsty than “Solar Power.” 

However, Lorde decided not to be tied down to one topic. With the song “Big Star,”  Lorde sings about her deceased dog, and in the following track, “Leader of a New Regime,” she explores the concept of a future where humans must run to sanctuaires in order to survive because of how damaged the environment became. Lorde even went back to her roots with the song “Secrets from a Girl (Who’s Seen it All)” where she reversed the chords from the song “Ribs,” a song about the fear of growing up, and sings to her past self to let her know that she is going to be fine.  

Despite all of these different themes, her final track “Oceanic Feeling” beautifully wraps up everything. In the start of this song, she sings about her family. This is how she realizes that growing up is inevitable after reflecting that her father had to go through a similar process as well. Unlike her past albums she approaches the future with excitement, thinking about having a daughter and what habits she will pick up from her mother. In one of the final verses she acknowledges that she has changed and will continue to change with the line “Now the cherry black lipstick’s gatherin’ dust in a drawerI don’t need her anymore. ‘Cause I got this power.” In 2014, Lorde was known for wearing darker colors including her lipstick, which is the complete opposite of the sundresses she has worn for the music videos of this album. I am giving this album five stars. Even after the hiatus and the different direction of this album, Lorde never lost her sound.