One word to describe this album, hurt. From every track, you can just tell that Lily has been through it; whether it was her own doing or not, it's still sh*t. This is her first music since her marriage fell apart, so this is one to really sink your teeth into. A lot of the stories told in this album take place before and during her Sheezus tour. Every track has meaning and if you get a chance to read her autobiography it puts it all into perspective.
This track show lily has clearly had enough of peoples sh*t, especially the media. Come on Then is a great soundtrack for when you're going through a rough patch. This song is a massive middle finger to all the haters. It discusses the way the tabloids have dragged her through the dirt over and over again. Online hearsay means absolutely nothing and she knows that. The song is very different to The fear when Lily states "'Cause everyone knows that's how you get famous, I'll look at the sun and I'll look in the mirror". She went from using the media as a marker of fame to no now resenting what they write about her.
No one plans for their marriage to go to sh*t. It's not what people dream of on their wedding day but unfortunately, sh*t happens sometimes. This song details the aftermath of her marriage ending. Lily painfully expresses how at times she couldn't breathe and felt like she was losing her mind. Despite the lyrics showing chaos, the tune of the song is somewhat satisfying. The reparative upbeat baseline makes for great listening, quite the juxtaposition to the meaning of the song.
This is a song of longing, it's painful and it's raw. This is a true love song to her ex-husband. It shows that despite her actions while on tour and leading up to her divorce, she did truly love her husband. "I hope we're gonna pull through, But darling I need my time away from you" - sometimes you do need space and Lily clearly knows that but she does still hope the marriage will last - sadly it didn't. A large part of the Sheezus tour was in America - the land of the free - while there Lily did cheat on her husband. Whether it was the drugs, the fame or the media hounding she made some poor choices.
As you may know, Lily's dad is the famous comedian Keith Allen. He had a very visible drug habit during lily's childhood. In her autobiography, it's clear his ways had a lasting effect on her. The song gains its title from the old adage "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree" Lily herself had a drug problem during some of her own children's childhoods. The song itself starts by discussing how much she wishes should go back to before the chaos. On numerous occasions, the tabloids took the liberty of writing about Lily's drinking habits, this clearly hurt her as she states, "I like a drink but that does not make me a wreck". She didn't want to be like her parents but sadly it ended up that way.
This is written from the perspective of her daughter. It talks about how she's sad she doesn't get to see her mother. The song expresses Lily's guilt for not being there with her family while her kids were growing up. Again this is a theme she explores in her book. If you had or are a parent who works a lot you can definitely relate to. Sometimes in hindsight, a career just isn't more important than family.
This album just shows how sh*t being famous can be, only made worse by the toxicity of the tabloids, particularly the British ones. The pain and heartache that goes along with a divorce, is laid bare in this album.
