I remember when I first heard Suki Waterhouse’s sexy voice. It was early 2022, and her hit song “Good Looking” was all over TikTok — and I was quick to add it to my latest playlist.
Her stardom initially came through modeling, and she soon turned to acting as well. Waterhouse stars as keyboardist Karen Sirko in the Amazon Prime adaptation of “Daisy Jones & The Six.” She released her debut album “I Can’t Let Go” while filming the show, and in an interview with Insider, she said “the role blended with her desire to make music.”
In March of this year, she gave birth to her first child with actor husband Robert Pattinson (hello Edward Cullen!). But that didn’t stop her from producing more music.
The 18-track EP, “Memoir of a Sparklemuffin”, was released on September 13. On “Sparklemuffin,” Waterhouse seems to ignore the earlier gloom of “I Can’t Let Go” and EP. EPs, where she replaced it with a new pop punk persona. I was excited to see Waterhouse’s new style of music, as “I Can’t Let Go” sounded a bit slow for my liking.
Sparklemuffin’s opening track, “Gateway Drug,” is impressive, with Waterhouse’s silky vocals echoing throughout the thunderous drugs and smooth electric guitar. Almost a retrospective of Lana Del Rey’s “Ultraviolence,” this song first caught my attention as the romantic, almost obsessive lyrics that sum up Waterhouse’s drive for love.
“Supersad” follows, detailing Waterhouse’s struggles with depression, and letting go of all the pain that came before it. This song gave me Maggie Rogers or Soccer Mommy vibes, with an upbeat pop beat underneath Waterhouse’s “I don’t care” attitude.
Next came my favorite song from the album, another song called Blackout Drunk. This emotional and haunting song recounts the experience of dealing with a drunk and messy friend who “messes up.”[s] “Every Night,” which Waterhouse can’t seem to escape. Contrasting the upbeat melody with the angry lyrics, Waterhouse has created a song I can’t stop streaming.
Another favorite of mine, “My Fun,” made me want to dance barefoot in the grass on a sunny day. Glamorous, popular and kind, Waterhouse reflected on the joy she felt in the relationship, and the happiness she carried was clear to see.
“God, it’s good to have someone who loves me like I love to have fun, oh God!” Waterhouse sings. It’s nice to see Waterhouse happy in a song for once, enjoying life.
“OMG” had a similar vibe, but showcased the toxicity of the romance detailed on the album. “My baby ain’t no good for me and nothing’s ever easy,” Waterhouse belts out over roaring drums and energetic, booming guitar.
Waterhouse also included slower, more acoustic songs such as “Faded” and “To Get You”. They were both dreamers, and “To Get You” reminded me of Mazzy Starr’s early work; She painted a compelling picture of longing for a lover, and anything she would do to keep him in her life.
This is in strong contrast to the following song, “Big Love”. Although it’s very simple, it creates a heart-wrenching rock beat as Waterhouse lets her hair down and her true emotions fly free.
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However, some songs fell flat for me. “Apathy” is too repetitive, “Lawsuit” is too forgettable, “Legendary”, “Powerless”, and “Everyone Breaks Up Anyway” are still nice, but too slow for my liking.
“Sparklemuffin” is actually a memoir. The songs “Model, Actress, Whatever” and “Could Have Been a Star” parallel Waterhouse’s feelings of insecurities in her career and accomplishments. “Sparklemuffin” is not only a memoir about her career, but also a memoir about her journey through life, heartbreak, jealousy, and ultimately finding herself and true happiness.
“Sparklemuffin” finally ends with a bang. “To Love” is the perfect ending to this album, concluding with the theme of hope in Waterhouse’s love life, and reminding everyone how beautiful love is.
I feel like I can’t fully review this album without talking about its title. The peacock spider is a venomous species of peacock spider, found only in Australia. In an interview with the Associated Press, Waterhouse said she felt “a little bit like that.” [it]She explained that she and Sparklemuffin are perceived as different from who they really are, which is a theme I saw overused throughout the album.
Overall, although this album has its flaws, I think it is a good representation of Waterhouse’s feelings and tells a compelling story about love. I liked the first half of the album much more than the second half, as it seemed very unique to Waterhouse’s previous music. Eventually, I can see myself listening to some of the songs over and over again.
Rating: 8/10
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