After topping the charts with her hit singles “Espresso” and “Please Please Please,” winning two Grammys for her album Short n’ Sweet, and selling out her first arena tour, Sabrina Carpenter has made a name for herself within mainstream music. The release of her new album, Man’s Best Friend, sees the singer stepping back into the spotlight more cheekily than before.
However, before her album’s initial release, it was already sparking heated discussions online. After surprising fans with the announcement of her new album, Sabrina came under fire for the record’s controversial and provocative cover. Many said the cover was “degrading” and that Carpenter was “appealing to the male gaze.” Others defended her, saying that the cover was a satire on how men treat women.
Later, in an interview with CBS Mornings, Sabrina mentioned that she was shocked at the public’s perception of the cover. “Y’all need to get out more, I think,” Carpenter stated, “…between me and my friends…it just wasn’t even a conversation…”
Man’s Best Friend
Man’s Best Friend, Carpenter’s seventh studio album, released on August 29. There are a few familiar faces who worked with Sabrina on this album: John Ryan, Amy Allen, and Jack Antonoff. The trio previously worked on the singer’s most critically acclaimed album, Short n’ Sweet.
With Short n’ Sweet, Sabrina found a sound that worked for her. Man’s Best Friend sees her sticking with that sound and capitalizing on its success. The singer continues to hone her charisma with fun lyrics and airy vocals. Production is rich with glittery synths and retro grooves, reminiscent of the 70s and 80s. And it wouldn’t be a Sabrina Carpenter album without, of course, her cheeky punchlines and suggestive innuendos.
Similar to Carpenter’s previous album, Man’s Best Friend explores her romantic relationships, sexual frustrations, and poor treatment in relationships. She once again sings that the men in her love life always disappoint.
Album review
Her lead single, “Manchild,” acts as the album’s opener, setting the tone and feel for the rest of the record. The single is laced with warm synths and twangy guitar strums. The dating landscape can be hell for women, and Carpenter is not holding back exposing the immaturity of men.
The next track, “Tears,” gives similar vibes to those of R&B and disco singer Diana Ross’s “Upside Down.” In the glittery disco-esque single, Carpenter lusts over decent men. ” I get wet at the thought of you / Being a responsible guy,” she sings. Men doing the bare minimum is (shamefully) hot. The music video, which stars actor Coleman Domingo, seemingly takes inspo from the cult classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show, adding to the song’s overall feel.
If “Tears” is about the singer craving over a man who is responsible, “My Man on Willpower” is the complete opposite. In the song, Carpenter shows that her man’s new found restraint and responsibility is a bit too much for her. On “Sugar Talking,” the singer calls out men who use their sweet talk and charisma to ease their way into bed. A song that seems highly relatable in the dating scene with the rise of “performative males.”
One of the slower songs on the record is “We Almost Broke Up Again Last Night.” The soft strums of the guitar paired with Carpenter’s airy vocals help to express the constant on and offs in her relationship and the turmoil that follows. It’s as if the singer peeked at some texts from my friend about the guy she swore she was done with it and wrote a song about it.
However, on “Nobody’s Son,” Sabrina laments over the breakup between her and her partner and expresses her growing disappointment in men. “Go Go Juice” is a particularly fun track on the record. Carpenter taps into country music elements with her twangy accent and fiddle break towards the end of the song. She has previously experimented with a country element on Short n’ Sweet with “Slim Pickins.”
Another fun song on the record is “House Tour.” In the eighties-inspired pop song, Sabrina turns up the heat while doing her own house tour. “Do you want the house tour? / I could take you to the first, second, third floor,” she continues, “And I promise none of this is a metaphor.” Although she insists there’s no metaphor, the implications are made clear as she plays with words. Definitely one of , if not the, most danceworthy tracks on the album.
Why the album may fall short with some listeners
Despite Man’s Best Friend receiving praise from many online, others hardly liked the record or found it severely underwhelming. Critique and mass split of opinion on this album may be due to several reasons.
Today, it seems like you can never listen to an album that doesn’t at least have some form of production from Jack Antonoff. Recently, he’s worked with many popular artists such as Taylor Swift on The Tortured Poets Department and Lorde on Melodrama. For Sabrina’s most recent two albums, he has been a major producer on her music.
Despite his production being a driver factor in many artists’ success, listeners have been experiencing “Jack Antonoff fatigue“. After hearing his production on many albums released both this year and last year, his style can feel a bit repetitive. Many of Antonoff’s signature sound styles, such as synths, can feel old and recycled, making songs sound too similar. This seems to be the case for Man’s Best Friend, as listeners felt the songs flowed too much into each other.
I think for many, it felt too soon for Sabrina to drop another album. The release of Man’s Best Friend comes barely a year after Short n’ Sweet. It seems she’s taken a page from her friend Taylor Swift, who’s released multiple albums back-to-back since 2020. While releasing back-to-back isn’t necessarily a bad thing, the quality of music an artist releases can significantly drop as they try to capitalize on their current momentum in culture.
Personally, this seems to be the issue with Carpenter’s album for me. Some of the songs off the record feel like leftovers from Short n’ Sweet that were a bit too sweet to make it on the previous album. The production on the album can feel overly stuffy at times, and many of Carpenter’s sexual lyrics and punchlines can feel clunky and lose their edge because of their prevalence.
Final thoughts
When I first listened to Man’s Best Friend, I didn’t vibe with it. But after a couple more listens, it started to grow on me. So, maybe it’s one of those grower albums.
If you’re looking for something soft with lyricism that feels raw and emotionally vulnerable, then this album probably isn’t for you. Carpenter’s fifth album emails i can’t send may be more to your liking then. However, Man’s Best Friend isn’t trying to be emails i can’t send, it is its own concept (even though some songs off the record feel like they could be part of Short n’ Sweet).
Man’s Best Friend feels like a party for heartbreak. Although it may not be pop perfection, it’s a fun album to dance to and have sing-alongs in the car to. Overall, the album’s a solid 3/5.
