Filipino and British singer-songwriter beabadoobee’s fourth full-length album, “Pylon,” released on Sept. 18. The artist remarked that the album was made while she was on tour, exploring feelings of homesickness that result from time away from home. 

First on the album is “Pylon,” the title track captures the bittersweet feeling of homesickness. The song starts off with soft instrumentals and gradually builds into a grittier, electric guitar track. The singer-songwriter explains that her album name, “Pylon” refers to the physical metal pylon structures that transmit power, which were one of the only constants she experienced in the flurry of touring. The song “Pylon” serves as an earnest introduction to the album, and the buildup towards the end of the song sets the stage for the next few upbeat, rock-adjacent songs. 

“Sun Has Set,” this album’s first single release, starts strong with a heavy drumline. The singer expresses an angry disappointment against an unknown person through the loud, layered electric guitar. She sings the phrase “the sun has set,” indicative that whatever relationship that was shared has now come to a close. Instead of the airy voice she used in the opening song “Pylon,” beabadoobee now sings with more intensity. 

Though her next song, “Estranged,” takes on a more upbeat tone. Yet, the content of the song still remains pessimistic. beabadoobee sings about the numbing experience of being in a slump. She sings how she does not “wanna leave [her] home again,” possibly alluding to her conflicted feelings about going on tour. 

In great contrast to the light-hearted sound of “Estranged,” “Switchblade,” the second single release of the album, takes a much darker, brooding tone. The singer asks open-ended questions to the listener: “Do you start the fight or take the flight?” The song has an almost jarring backtrack, adding to a solemn, pensive tone. The song ends in a joint chorus, with what seems to be children’s voices all singing the chorus, only enhancing the off-kilter atmosphere of the song. 

beabadoobee returns to bittersweet longing in “Write Me A Letter.” She expresses her complex feelings and the difficulty of talking about them; she says that she will write them in a letter instead. This song acts as a brief interlude of self-reflection and shows her effort to improve upon how she feels instead of stewing in her emotions like in “Estranged.” 

“It’s Alright” has an upbeat rock beat, reminiscent of her past songs such as “Apple Cider” from her album “Loveworm.” She sings to an unknown person, urging them to make her feel better. However, the relationship is complicated, as she seems to view this person less as a substantial relationship and more as a distraction from her problems. She tells this person to “waste [her] time” and “take the wheel,” implying that this person may be a stand-in for her other issues that lay unresolved. This thread continues in her next track, “In Motion,” a floaty track intersected by an angry chorus that shows her emotional instability. 

“Memories,” her third single release from the album, is a sweeter track describing an earnest appreciation and love for a person. She recounts details about the person, saying that “she sees [them] in all shades of blue.” The song acts as a break between the more angsty tracks that come before and after it. “Nothing To Prove,” made in collaboration with founder of Paramore Hayley Williams, is the most joyous and carefree track of the album. It details the singer’s thoughts about letting go of past wrongs and living life happily. 

“Radio” brings back the harsh electric feel. beabadoobee breaks the fourth wall in this song with the promise that “you’ll listen to this song on the radio.” She sings about a person who has done her wrong in the past, saying that she doesn’t need to explicitly address them, as her feelings are all displayed in her music. 

“Powerlines,” featuring lead vocalist Brendan Yates from the punk band Turnstile, brings back the motif of metal pylons and roadside architecture. The sound is obscure and creeping, almost as if it is nighttime. In comparison, the next track, “Spark,” sounds like dawn, with a gentler tone and a laid back, largely acoustic backing track. 

The recurring theme of homesickness is brought back in full force in the next track, “Despite That.” In this song, beabadoobee expresses how, after being on the road for so long, all she wants to do is go home and see her special person. 

The closing track, “Satellite,” returns back to more of a placid, pensive tone. Instead of a pylon being the motif that connects her disparate journey together, it is now the satellite, which reconnects her with her loved ones across the world. “Satellite” serves as a wistful ending streaked with sadness. 

For those who are missing home, or counting the days down until fall break, take a chance on beabadoobee’s new album “Pylon.”