On Oct. 24, Demi Lovato released their ninth studio album, “It’s Not That Deep.” The light-hearted, dance-pop album marks a departure from Lovato’s recent rock-inspired music and returns to her signature and highly successful pop sound. “It’s Not That Deep” deftly balances depth with dance music, but it hasn’t been quite as big of a hit as Lovato’s previous works. It’s the first of her studio albums to exit the Billboard 200 after just one week.
The album opens with its light-hearted and catchy lead single, “Fast,” which was released in August ahead of the rest of the album. Although a perfect choice for the lead, the song itself offers very little substance. Its lyrics are repetitive, with the unastonishing refrain “I wanna go fast, I wanna go hard / I wanna go anywhere, anywhere you are” sprinkled throughout the song. At just over three minutes, the track is fairly short. But the length works in Lovato’s favor, preventing the song from sounding monotonous.
On the next track, “Here All Night,” Lovato shifts focus to tackle their emotions, singing lyrics like “Damn I’m so devastated (But this song is awesome) / Mascara still holding on.” The faster tempo works to distract listeners from the vulnerability Lovato presents on the track, mirroring how she distracts herself from her own emotions.
“Frequency” is a track rife with what sounds like Charli xcx’s influence — from the high-energy tempo, to the way Lovato balances singing and speaking the lyrics. Similar to popular Charli xcx tracks, Lovato’s song utilizes vocal chops, like “Fu-fu-fu-fuck up the vibe, fuck up the vibe.” But Lovato still adds their own twist, switching between showing off their classic belts and chanting the lyrics.
The next track, “Let You Go,” marks a shift from the hyper-pop songs that opened up the album to a slower, more serious tune. The album’s previous tracks toyed with the idea of vulnerability, but only in the context of Lovato dismissing her feelings. But on “Let You Go,” listeners hear Lovato fully embracing their emotions, with lyrics like “And it kills me / Knowing what it was and what it will be / Maybe we’ll be better as a memory / Even if it means you’ll forget me.”
Lovato continues the album’s deeper tone with “Sorry To Myself,” a song driven by self-pity and acceptance that showcases the complicated feelings of anger and guilt following a breakup. Lovato sings, “I could point fingers at everyone else / But sooner or later, it lands on myself.” Although the track’s subject matter is interesting, the lack of depth in Lovato’s lyricism evaporates what could’ve been a deep, melancholic ballad.
On “Little Bit,” Lovato embodies a child-like spirit, singing, “Our walls are up so high, but what if we let ’em fall? / Maybe they’re in the way of something incredible / Baby, let’s find out right now.” The track — which immediately follows the heartfelt “Sorry To Myself” — gives listeners whiplash, taking them right back to the carefree attitude Lovato had at the album’s start. But this whiplash isn’t necessarily a bad thing. By alternating between emotional and upbeat tracks, Lovato highlights the complexity and confusion that characterize the human experience of love.
Lovato succeeds in balancing the vulnerability of her lyrics with a lively tempo on “In My Head.” She sings, “I could be everything I’m not, could play every single part / And you’ll still call it whatever.”
“Kiss” is another song that displays the influence of Charli xcx. The track is the least serious on the album, given that Lovato repeats “I kiss for fun (ha) / It’s fun to kiss (woo)” over and over again.
The end of the album features its two most gut-wrenching songs. Tonally, “Before I Knew You” and “Ghost” are the complete opposite of the songs preceding them. Here, Lovato lays themself bare.
On “Ghost,” Lovato sings, “If you’re not here by my side / Just show me some kind of sign that you’re close / Wanna be haunted for life by your ghost.” The track serves as the perfect closer for the album. With a voice full of raw emotion, Lovato advises her audience that they can avoid their feelings for as long as they want — but at the end of the day, those feelings will persist until the audience chooses to face them.
