Pomegranate Seeds: 9/10

Willow Smith has recently released her new album <COPINGMECHANISM>. After listening to the entire album, here were my thoughts on the alt-rock star’s latest project.

<COPINGMECHANISM> started off strong with the first track “<maybe> it’s my fault.” The intro was good and let me know immediately what type of music I was listening to. The beats and instruments were catchy and were very well produced, especially the few guitar solos featured throughout the song which brought a great level of intensity. Willow was also great on this track as I found her singing to be good and enjoyable, which was a lot more than what I was expecting. “<maybe> it’s my fault” had good beats, good lyrics, and a great bridge and chorus which made this a perfect start to the album.

I would continue to be pleasantly surprised with the second track “Falling Endlessly” which brought the same energy as the first track and was also a good listen. The production was great and the guitar was just as good. The next track was a good change from the first two songs, as “curious/furious” started off more mellow but turned into a full-on rock ballad. Willow’s singing stood out in this song in the best way possible, as well as the bridge and chorus which were both fantastic.

Track four, “WHY?”, would continue with the same intense energy as the last few songs and was really fun to listen to. This song is what all alt-rock songs try to do, but can’t. The next song, “<Coping Mechanism>”, was also a great song but does sound similar to the first two tracks. Another enjoyable song, but nothing that special. The next few songs would all be amazing, starting with track six “Split” which was a great mood change from the last few songs, feeling angrier and full of emotion. You can tell that a lot of hard work was put into this track. It was great to listen to and stood out as one of the best songs on the album. “hover like a GODDESS” was reminiscent of the first two tracks but still had a lot of great lyrics and Willow brought a lot of emotion to this song.

“ur a <stranger>” was my favorite track on the album. The instruments in this song sounded amazing and were masterfully arranged with the guitar solos standing out and adding an extra layer of rock to the track. “ur a <stranger>” gave different vibes than the rest of the songs as it felt like the purest rock, almost veering into hard rock. It was great to listen to and very fun, I only wish it was a bit longer.

“Perfectly Not Close To Me ft. Yves Tumor” was another well-produced song that grabbed my attention thanks to the collaborator. Willow and Yves brought a certain level of intensity to this song that made it really good and was what was needed for this album. “No Control” was also a fun song that, like all of the songs, had a great bridge and chorus that had great lyrics and great instruments. The last track on the album, “BATSHIT!”, was a perfect ending for this album as it continued the energy and emotion that I felt throughout this entire album. It was one of the best songs on the album and was a great way to end the album.

Ultimately, <COPINGMECHANISM> was a fun, alt-rock album that exceeded my expectations. With my only issues being that some of the songs ran together and were a bit too short, this album got 9/10 pomegranate seeds. It was cohesive and well-produced, which is something a lot of albums lack these days. Willow’s newest album was fantastic and I would recommend it to all rock and alternative fans.