Maggie Rogers – Heard It in a Past Life Album Review

Her name is Margaret, she’s from Maryland. Are you enticed yet?

Welcome to the stage another rich white girl who went to fancy music school and learned to play harp at the age of 7 (you’re excused).

The beauty of this world is how we’re not always going to get along. That being said, Maggie Rogers sounds like her and fellow producer Greg Kurstin fell into a hole together made up of Haim, Sylvan Esso, and Carly Rae Jepson songs and couldn’t get out. The song “Past Life” is “Hello” by Adele’s younger and less talented sister. Which would make sense because Greg produced that song as well.

Three recurring subjects: light, water, and breathing. Sounds to me like Maggie is a walking example of someone who has lived through it all.

I think the real problem is I can hear too much of her voice and that’s really a shame because the Been There Heard That tunes she’s singing over have more replay value entirely by themselves.

The “nail on the head” for me is a recently released melodramatic cover of Whitney Houston’s timeless and indisputably untouchable classic “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” drowning in vocal tweaks and other lifeless distracted elements. A slow recreation in an attempt to be versatile, yet is so slow she will never quite reach whatever proposed destination she is heading toward.

My advice to you, Maggie Rae, is “Sit down, I’ve already heard this song before.”