The Loneliest Time

AlbumOct 21 / 202216 songs, 54m 11s
Dance-Pop
Popular

True to its title, Carly Rae Jepsen’s sixth album is an examination of solitude through catchy, chatty pop cuts like the spiky, synthy \"Talking to Yourself\" and the sweetly wary \"So Nice,\" as well as quite a few tracks that feel very *of* Jepsen\'s catalog. Take its title track, a thumping yet wistful duet with singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright that, thanks to its disco strings and Jepsen\'s spoken-word interlude, squarely falls under the \"sad banger\" category. \"This song is very much about that fantasy of going over to your ex\'s in the middle of the night and pouring rain to rekindle what was not finished,\" Jepsen tells Apple Music. \"It\'s just a terrible idea in real life, but it\'s really fun to sing about.\" But the Canadian singer also spreads her wings with the poison-pen online-dating chronicle \"Beach House\" showing off her sardonic side and the California chronicle \"Western Wind\" possessing dream-pop vibes. \"Go Find Yourself or Whatever,\" which Jepsen co-wrote with frequent collaborator Rostam Batmanglij, is the starkest sonic departure—a downcast ode to a restless lover, with a country vibe. \"I definitely have been in love with the traveler before,\" she says. \"Looking back on the song when I perform it live now, there are elements of this song that just speak to me, too, as the traveler: \'You feel safe in sorrow/You feel safe on an open road/Go find yourself or whatever.\'\" Jepsen recalls that Batmanglij reminding her of \"Go Find Yourself\" helped her blow open the idea of her sound: \"Rostam sent me an email, being like, \'Remember this?\' I listened, and I was like, \'Huh. Am I allowed to do songs like that?\' Challenging that question and answering with an absolute \'yeah, there are no rules\' is really what this album\'s about. That rebellion led me to fit songs like \'Beach House\' and \'Go Find Yourself or Whatever\' on the same album. It\'s an old idea that a pop artist has to be one thing. We contain multitudes. Why can\'t this album allow that exploration a little bit?\"

6.5 / 10

More interested in earmarking ideas than in formulating an overarching aesthetic proposition, Carly Rae Jepsen’s fifth album diversifies her portfolio of 1980s pop sounds.

C

Jepsen's new offering heightens her pop experimentation, at the cost of cohesion

6 / 10

Carly Rae Jepsen’s sixth studio album may see her signature sound infused with new influences, but it never loses its sparkle

8 / 10

After three albums filled to the brim with joyful, explosive pop, Carly Rae Jepsen finds her strength in stillness on The Loneliest Time

The latest album from the Canadian pop goddess delivers high-gloss pop with serious emotional punch

The queen of writing from a place of both euphoric yearning and the ache of a broken heart, she’s never afraid to feel absolutely everything in her music.

Working with a team that included her "Call Me Maybe" collaborator Tavish Crowe, Carly Rae Jepsen created her sixth album during the COVID-19 global pandemic -- a perfect time to sit with solitude and fantasize about connection.

The Loneliest Time is a solid leftfield pop album, showcasing Jepsen’s ability to draw across eras and genre to push the boundaries of what pop can be.

7.0 / 10

Carly Rae Jepsen built her career on the peripheries of love—the first move toward a crush on mega-hit “Call Me Maybe,” the Springsteenian desire to escape life’s worries with a lover on “Run Away With Me,” and the haunting daydreams of missed opportunities on “Julien.”

6 / 10

A highly-decorated Canadian popstar (or rather, pop icon) emerges from a period of isolation. Yet, rather than wielding her usual sword, she carries a

Carly Rae Jepsen's 'The Loneliest Time' is a markedly more stoic effort from a singer who, up until now, has been relentlessly upbeat.

7 / 10

Carly Rae Jepsen's 'The Loneliest Time' is not without the glittery, carefree pop she's famous for, but the singer gets personal in ways she hasn't before.

73 %

Album Reviews: Carly Rae Jepsen - The Loneliest Time

77 %

Robyn Hitchcock finds inspiration from his psychological hernia, while Carly Rae Jepsen finds the fun in heartbreak