Olivia Rodrigo Sends Off Teendom With a Bang in ‘Guts,’ a Record That’s as Much Brash Fun as the First One: Album Review
variety.comChris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic A sophomore jinx would be a terrible thing to suffer before you’re old enough to have a legal drink to slug down the disappointment.
It’s not something Olivia Rodrigo has to worry about. “Guts,” her second album, does feel at times like “Sour, Too” — a picking-up-right-where-we-left-off extension of her Grammy-winning 2021 debut — but that can only be counted as a good thing, if the spark is still there.
It is, in spades. Two years of maturation have not done anything to put a dent in how much accomplished and rocking fun her music was right out of the gate.
One of the year’s best and most delightful albums, again? Of course it is. The word “rock” is not used inadvisably here. The Rolling Stones’ long-awaited comeback single was supposed to be the rock event of the week, but don’t be sure it isn’t “Guts,” which has all the glory, guitars and impertinent spirit you might need out of a record at the moment, whether you’re closer to her generation or theirs.
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