Psychopath

"I’m definitely different. I’ve learned to say no and that time is your most valuable thing. I won’t just do something because it looks good. I’m going to do what I want to do. I’m learning to keep my circle small and not listen to what the internet says or what other people say."

(Morgan Wade /americansongwriter.com, September 8, 2023)

Her second studio album was released on August 25, 2023 on RCA Nashville. It is the follow-up to her highly acclaimed debut "Reckless" from 2021 and was once again produced by Sadler Vaden. Just like its visual design also is reminiscent of the previous project with its cover image.

And as the album's title ("Psychopath") suggests, it's not about hopeful small-town memories, although Morgan Wade puts the theme of the self-written title song in a press statement into perspective: "When you look at the title, you don’t assume that’s a love song. But it is, I kinda dig that."

Morgan Wade was either involved with or is the sole writer of all 13 tracks on the album. And anyone who knows a little about her life story so far will not be surprised that the topic of addiction and depression quietly runs through the project. Nevertheless, it is not turning into a therapy session, but the topics are rather processed via vague relationship stories. So it remains open for interpretation whether it is the greatest love or just hopeless addiction when we hear Morgan Wade sing on 'Psychopath' with the characteristic tiredness in her voice: you might be the death of me, throw my ashes out in the sea.

This makes it easier to digest, but still keeps it demanding, and apart from typical mainstream productions. Which continues down to the sonic execution, which does not limit itself stylistically, but at the same time does not contain any dazzling effects. Or as womeninpop.com describes it: "Although Wade performs under the banner of ‘country singer’, her music is so much more than just a single genre. Don’t expect a rash of banjos or fiddles, and across 'Psychopath' country music vibes are mixed with rock, soul, pop and lush piano ballads."

It is the emotional depths of the lyrics that anchor the project and at the same time challenge the listener. Texts that are trying to put words to emotions, only to realize in the end that that doesn't always work. This becomes particularly intense with the last title of the project. The increasingly uprising piano ballad '27 Club ' tries to find meaning in life, somewhere between loneliness, longing, suicide and fast-moving drugs. A life whose destiny should have been death at the age of 27 (the age at which artists like Amy Winehouse and Janis Joplin died), but which didn't happen either:

I don't know if I would call it luck.
But I, I didn't make the twenty-seven club.
I'm twenty-eight.
So, y'all ain't gotta dig my grave.

(27 Club / Morgan Wade)

'80's Movie' is much lighter and catchier, with its pop-rock soundings of movie classics from the 1980s such as Dirty Dancing or Harry & Sally. Or as Morgan Wade puts it via  stereogum.com: "If you want to feel instantly happy, you can watch a feel-good movie from the 80’s and it’ll cheer you right up. That nostalgic, joyful sentiment is what we were channeling when writing this song and I think we got there."

Then the song 'Alanis' is dedicated to Canadian/American singer Alanis Morissette, who enjoyed worldwide success in the 1990s with her album "Jagged Little Pill". But it's the personal struggles of dealing with success that make Morgan Wade feel connected to Alanis Morissette:

Alanis, your anger was a medicine I didn't know I would need.
I'm finding there's not much difference between you and me.
You understand all the thoughts in my head
that make my words extreme.

(Alanis / Morgan Wade, Nathalie Hemby, Sadler Vaden)

Reason enough for the artist in question to officially reply on social media: "Morgan, thank you for seeing me," she writes. "Deeply moved. Love you."

Sieh dir diesen Beitrag auf Instagram an

Ein Beitrag geteilt von Alanis Morissette (@alanis)

Although the dramatic piano ballad ' Guns and Roses ' bears the title of a legendary rock group, it is all about the bread and circuses of an unhealthy relationship characterized by uncertainty rather than trust and stability:

I never know when you're gonna stay or you're gonna leave.
Bullets are roses, always rainin' down on me.
Are you gonna give me paradise?
Are you gonna shoot everything you see?
I never know when it's guns and roses.

(Guns and Roses / Morgan Wade, Nathalie Hemby, Sadler Vaden)

The phantom pain of a lost body part is transferred to lost love in 'Phantom Feelings', while the pleading gospel sound of 'Want' keeps stressing the desire for him or her. The booming 'Meet Somebody' expresses undisguised frustration with the sexual superficiality in the world: Why the hell can't I meet somebody? All these people want to do is fuck someone at the party.

With its mix of nostalgia and disillusionment, the self-written 'Losers Look Like Me' becomes one of the highlights of the project:

I thought we'd grow old, and I'd take your name,
spend Friday nights playing board games
and tucking our kids in bed at home.

Now, I'm watching all the people walking down the street,
and the losers kicking rocks look just like me.
I wish I was still sixteen,
and I didn't know the world was so damn mean.

(Losers Look Like Me / Morgan Wade)

"Psychopath" is not a superficial pop album. At the same time, it does lack its lightheartedness in most places. And in terms of sound, it also moves in a rather narrow band. But if you take the time and pay enough attention to its lyrics, then you will realize it as a highly coherent project that offers many touching insights. Or as Morgan Wade herself puts it on X (formerly Twitter): "Regardless of what people say about Psychopath, I’m proud because I feel like it showcases where I am. I have no choice but to be authentic. And I have to feel what I feel. And right now, I’m really feeling the music."

Regardless of what people say about Psychopath, I’m proud because I feel like it showcases where I am. I have no choice but to be authentic. And I have to feel what I feel. And right now, I’m really feeling the music. My sophomore album, #Psychopath, is out August 25th. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/VB2wPNEbna

— Morgan Wade (@themorganwade) May 17, 2023