Broken Hearts Club (album)

Syd, a member of the Grammy-nominated band The Internet, released her second solo album five years after the release of her debut solo album, Fin.^[1] Whilst Fin has been described as a 'confident' and self-assured album, Broken Hearts Club is more 'vulnerable' - inspired by contrasting experiences of love and heartbreak.^[2][3] Syd began work on the album in the midst of a relationship, and finished it after the couple separated. The album follows a similar narrative pattern to her personal experience, starting with "CYBAH": a song about starting a new relationship, and closing with "Missing Out": which looks back on an ended relationship as both parties move on.^[4] In an interview with NME, Syd spoke about experiencing a creative period after she was diagnosed with depression and began to see a therapist, which enabled her to finish work on the album.^[2]

Syd, the former engineer for ex-band Odd Future, produced most of the record herself, collaborating on some songs with Rodney (Darkchild) Jerkins, bandmate Steve Lacy, and ForteBowie.^[3] Other collaborators include Smino, Kehlani on "Out Loud", Nicky Davey, Brandon Shoop, Troy Taylor, G Koop and Lucky Daye on "CYBAH".^[5]

"Missing Out" was released as a single in February 2021, with "Fast Car" and "Right Track" coming out in July and September of the same year respectively. In a press conference for "Fast Car", Syd said that the track was created because she 'wanted to make something for the gay Black girls'.^[6][7] The accompanying music video for the song, which the Gay Times called one of 'her most queer tracks to date', features Syd driving with a female love interest.^[8]

Broken Hearts Club received positive reviews, with NME giving it four out of five stars and calling it 'arguably the R&B star's strongest project to date'.^[5] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 82, based on 10 critic reviews.^[9] Pitchfork gave the album a 7.5, saying that the album's more traditional sound than Fin, 'reaffirms her considerable versatility' and that the album is finished with 'artful finesse'.^[10] Rolling Stone gave the album four stars, arguing it was an 'epic tale of love and loss with lush production'.^[11] Independent music website The Quietus called the album 'terrific'.^[4] The Guardian, giving 3 stars, called the album a 'mixed bag', stating that Syd was stronger on tracks where she collaborated with other artists.^[12] Okayplayer included the album on their '22 Best Albums of 2022' list.^[13]

The album will be her last released by Columbia Records.^[2]

Broken Hearts Club ^[14][15]