Rihanna's 'ANTI:' A track-by-track review
And the ANTI era of Rihanna has begun.
With a surprise release on TIDAL late Wednesday night, Rihanna ended the year-long speculation around her eighth album with one of the most stylistically adventurous entries of her career.
USA TODAY's Maeve McDermott and Patrick Ryan take a look at ANTI, track-by-track:
1. Consideration
If you were expecting another batch of radio-ready singles from Rihanna, she immediately dispels those notions with this punchy, broody banger. “Do things my own way, darlin’ / You should just let me / Why you will never let me grow?” she nimbly sings over a throbbing bass line, before newcomer SZA swoops in with a spellbinding chorus. It’s a confident, promising prelude to whatever else Anti has in store. — Ryan
2. James Joint
Dreamy keyboards and weed smoke hang over this minute-long interlude, in which she lusts for a lover gone astray. It's pleasant enough, but there's not much else to mull over here. — Ryan
3. Kiss It Better
Gleaming guitar riffs and drums drive this stadium anthem: an album highlight and perhaps Rihanna’s best shot at scaling the pop charts with Anti. Her sultry, towering vocals call to mind past hits Take a Bow and Cheers (Drink to That), and the simple hook (“Kiss it, kiss it, kiss it, baby”) is effectively catchy. — Ryan
4. Work
This Caribbean-flavored single was met with a collective “meh” on Twitter when it premiered Wednesday morning, thanks in part to its derivative tropical-house sound and phoned-in verses from both RiRi and Drake. Through no fault of their own, Work just can’t compete with the duo's previous collaborations Take Care and What’s My Name?, and repeat listens don’t do the tiresome lyrics many favors. — Ryan
5. Desperado
Imagine Rihanna doing Lana Del Rey at karaoke night and this Western-style number is akin to what you’d hear. “Desperado / Sitting in an old Monte Carlo / a man whose heart is hollow,” she sings with gusto, although the pulsing track ends up feeling more like filler. — Ryan
6. Woo
Rihanna’s rumored boyfriend, rapper Travis Scott, lends his signature Auto-Tuned drawl to this raging, drug-fueled banger. Hazy, indistinct vocals make it a tough one to really sing along to, although Hit-Boy’s stuttering beat creates an intriguing, heady vibe. — Ryan
7. Needed Me
A sleepy and intoxicating DJ Mustard joint that's best enjoyed with headphones, Needed Me is also a raw and refreshingly defiant confessional by Rihanna. "Didn't they tell you that I was a savage? / (Expletive) your white horse and a carriage," she rhymes, before declaring, "Oooh, you needed me / to feel a little more and give a little less." This is the empowering pop star we've been missing. — Ryan
8. Yeah, I Said It
Rihanna keeps the pace downtempo for this Timbaland-produced come-hither, although she actually doesn't have much to say here. A slinky addition to your bedroom soundtrack, but instantly forgettable. — Ryan
9. Same Ol' Mistakes
A Rihanna/Tame Impala cover? A Rihanna/Tame Impala cover. And this isn't a R&B transformation of New Person, Same Old Mistakes, the original track by the Aussie psych-rock revivalists; it's a pretty faithful (albeit slightly more slinky) rendition of the original, complete with the band's familiar noodly guitar effects and Rih's best impression of Kevin Parker's falsetto. — McDermott
10. Never Ending
You're not just imagining traces of Dido's Thank You in the verses of Never Ending; the singer-songwriter has a co-writing credit on the song, whether the reference is accidental or an intentional nod to her biggest hit.
The song is a little white-bread for Rihanna, but its sleepy singer-songwriter vibes certainly may win her some new fans, ones who'd rather listen to Vance Joy than BBHMM. Coldplay probably would've killed for this song, right? — McDermott
11. Love on the Brain
Oh my. Love on the Brain is an easy ANTI highlight, with a diva-ready melody and cozy doo-wop nostalgia that recalls her highest-profile R&B peer — this sounds like a Beyonce song.
But we're glad Rihanna's the one singing it, as she makes it her own with nimble, Erykah Badu-esque vocal quirks and rough-around-the-edges lyrics that may or may not reference a certain tumultuous past relationship ("I'm fist fighting with fire," "It beats me black and blue but it (expletive) me so good"). We're genuinely excited to hear this soundtracking rom-com movie sequences for the next twenty years. — McDermott
12. Higher
Over before it starts, the two-minute Higher is a finger in the eye of the swooning anthem that precedes it, as Rihanna ditches the pretty vibrato to sing-shout some late-night come-ons in the most BadGalRiRi moment on the record. She says it best herself: "I know I could be more creative and come up with poetic lines/but 'I'm turnt up off sizz and I love you' is the only thing that's in my mind." — McDermott
13. Close To You
ANTI ends on a cinematic note with Close To You, a worthy entry into Rihanna's history of dramatic piano ballads (Stay, Unfaithful). It's easy to imagine this song blown out as a maximalist, Adele-style bombast, but the string swells and Rih's vocal runs never get too self-indulgent, resulting in an understated and genuinely moving coda. — McDermott
Listen to ANTIvia TIDAL here.
