By DAHJIA THOMAS
Arts Editor
Melanie Martinez returns from her three-year hiatus to bring us “PORTALS,” an introduction to a new phase of her life. In this album, she kills off her original characters created with the last album “After School” from songs like “Class Fight” and “Show and Tell.”
“PORTALS” opens with “DEATH,” as it vocally illustrates her rebirth from the so-called death of her career, where she took an almost three year break from releasing new music due to sexual assault allegations against her. She disproved this with posts on Twitter, her song “PIGGYBACK” referring to the accuser using her name to gain attention. Now that fans have taken her side, she took this time to reinvent herself, singing, “they’re saying my name in their prayers again,” cherishing the loyalty within the bond she created with fans. The music video release shocked original fans of Martinez, prosthetics covering every inch of her body, designing a completely different aesthetic than what fans are used to. While she is still “Crybaby,” this is the third and final reiteration of the character, a pink, four-eyed alien version that lives on the line of life and death. Martinez ended one chapter and opened a new one; “Death has come to me, kissed me on the cheek, gave me closure.”
The next track is titled “VOID,” the lyrics representing her inner thoughts and judgments of herself, creating this void inside herself fueled by negativity. In reference to her old self, “Pipe down with the noise, I cannot bear my sorrow/I hate who I was before/I fear I won’t live to see the day tomorrow/Someone tell me if this is Hell,” she hated the image she put on. The one who put a bright smile on people’s faces is no longer here, but to fill her shoes is this mystical being sent from “In the void/In the void.” This void that causes her to be isolated from the world, tells her she is alone in this adaptation of Hell. “Like a priest behind confession walls, I judge/myself,” a powerful line signifying her idea of confessing to her old self that she wasn’t meant to always stay that way, her old self buried away and this new self taking over.
A personal favorite was “NYMPHOLOGY,” which touched on society’s views of women and controlling how they act, what they wear, and who they should be. There have been so many songs passionate about this topic, but Martinez takes an original approach. “I’m not fiction, I’m not fae/I won’t lick your wounds today” is scarily close to this idea men have of women, where they’re meant to conform to societal ideals of what a woman ‘should be.’ But of course, that’s unrealistic and, like she says, women are not works of fiction that people can write over. Each woman has their own style, their own personality, and for Martinez, she wants women to not be afraid to go against this. “It’s nymphology, not psychology/Be the manic pixie dream girl that you f**kin’/ought to be.” Just this line is the ego boost women need; they need a strong woman to let them know continuously that they are not only on this planet for others’ pleasure, but to live the lives they want and deserve. If OG fans are here, you would’ve noticed she spelt out “NYMPHOLOGY,” just like she did with “DOLLHOUSE,” first teaching fans how to spell out their emotional damage dealt by parents to now spelling out their freedom from society.
The singer has helped listeners through hard times, with her songs relating to dark topics such as toxic relationships, parental trauma, and unhealthy attachments to people. With her changing her entire image, fans were worried they would also lose that special connection they had with her previous self. However, Martinez has proven time and time again that she will always be here, even if she continues to alter herself. This concept took a while to grow on fans, but the cutesy creature she fashioned wormed its way into their hearts. Even seemingly leaving the face of the planet, fans’ dedication made her new album release that much more worth it. With a total of thirteen songs, each one has a different feel, the mystery of this new character adding to it. Melanie Martinez has grown from the girl sitting in the classroom to this fantasy persona that breaks the fourth wall. We’re all excited to see what she has in store for us next, and as usual, we’ll be waiting patiently.
