New Album Review: Noah Cyrus- The Hardest Part

Noah Cyrus- The Hardest Part

Label: Columbia

Producers: Mike Crossey, Lionel Crasta, Tommy English, Jason Evigan, Benjamin Gibbard, J.R. Rotem, Mark Schick

“When I turned 20, I was overcome with the thought that I might not turn 21/Death upon my doorstep if I took one more step/There’d be nothing left of me except these songs“. That’s as harrowing an opening stanza to an artist’s debut album as any in history, and the fact that Noah Cyrus is delivering it now only from the perspective of age 23 intensifies the impact in dramatic fashion. It sets the stage for a true exercise in the purest and rawest sense of a singer-songwriter’s craft. Cyrus weaves together a collection of gut-punching songs that suggest that the young lady has already battled (or at least witnessed as part of famous musical family that includes father Billy Ray and sister Miley) a extensive amount of heartbreak and depression, demons, and vices. The depth of tracks like “Mr. Percocet”, “Every Beginning Ends” (a splendid modern alt-country duet with Benjamin Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie), “Unfinished”, “My Side of the Bed”, and “I Burned LA Down” are astounding in their mature specificity, as they pinpoint all of the breaking points and failed rescue efforts in a doomed relationship. To hear her ruminate on aging on the title track, mortality on the hymnally-tinged “Loretta’s Song”, or the state of our crumbling national unity on “I Just Want a Lover” is even more rewarding and astonishing. It’s a revelation of an artistic voice that is wise and reflective far beyond her years. This is a remarkable album, as a debut or otherwise, and immediately establishes Noah Cyrus as an important artist to watch in the years ahead. It’s equally shattering, soothing, and soulful.

Track Listing:

1. “Noah (Stand Still)” (Noah Cyrus, PJ Harding)
2. “Ready to Go” (Cyrus, Harding, Victoria Zaro, Britten Newbill, Luke Milano, Jeff Baranowski)
3. “Mr. Percocet” (Cyrus, Harding, Sarah Hudson, Jason Evigan)
4. “Every Beginning Ends” with Benjamin Gibbard (Cyrus, Benjamin Gibbard)
5. “Hardest Part” (Cyrus, Ilsey Juber)
6. “I Just Want A Lover” (Cyrus, Laura Pergolizzi, Nate Campany English)
7. “Unfinished” (Cyrus, Juber, Dan Wilson, Jonathan Rotem)
8. “My Side of the Bed” (Cyrus, Harding)
9. “I Burned LA Down” (Cyrus, Harding)
10. “Loretta’s Song” (Cyrus, Harding)