Charlie Puth- Charlie
Label: Atlantic
Producer: Charlie Puth
The smooth pop operator finally reemerges with his third studio effort after a long period rife with creative pitfalls, romantic strife, and a record label shift at an unusually early time in his young career. The resulting effort, Charlie, finds the artist addressing the emotions and lessons learned during that turbulent time, all the while continuing to further polish the rhythmic brand of modern pop that places his expansive falsetto range front and center. The opening pair of songs, “That’s Hilarious” and “Charlie Be Quiet”, as well as later track “I Don’t Think I Like Her Anymore”, confront the sting and doubts stemming from his recent life experiences with a tone that doesn’t shy away from the bitter taste in his mouth, but still makes room for some sardonic levity. Meanwhile, heart-stricken performances like “Smells Like Me”, “Loser”, “When You’re Sad I’m Sad”, and “Tears On My Piano” dig deep into the aftermath of a shattered relationship with unabashed emotion, relinquishing the need to insert any irony or sarcasm to lighten the mood. Puth allows these performances to be precisely what they are: break-up tunes. That’s not to say however that he neglected his knack for creating infectious ear-worms, with snappy singles like “Light Switch” and “Left and Right” (featuring BTS member JungKook) delivering some of the most contagious and utterly pop moments of his catalog thus far. And by the time he arrives at the closing “No More Drama”, he’s singing with a renewed and resolute sense of closure and confidence, offering much promise for the future. All in all, Charlie dutifully accomplishes what every competent pop outing should, by balancing fun and accessible music with vivid and heartfelt stories. His ability to merge emotive and soaring vocal performances with a dizzying onslaught of memorable hooks, melodies and beats reminds us once again that Charlie Puth possesses the tools and potential to be a defining voice in the pop music universe for many years to come.
Track Listing:
- “That’s Hilarious” (Charlie Puth, Jacob Kasher Hindlin)
- “Charlie Be Quiet!” (Puth, Hindlin)
- “Light Switch” (Puth, Hindlin, Jake Torrey)
- “There’s A First Time for Everything” (Puth, Hindlin)
- “Smells Like Me” (Puth, Hindlin)
- “Left and Right” featuring JungKook (Puth, Hindlin)
- “Loser” (Puth, Hindlin)
- “When You’re Sad I’m Sad” (Puth, Hindlin)
- “Marks On My Neck” (Puth, Hindlin)
- “Tears On My Piano” (Puth, Hindlen, Torrey)
- “I Don’t Think That I Like Her” (Puth, Hindlin, Torrey, Blake Slatkin)
- “No More Drama” (Puth, Hindlin, Torrey)
The 706 
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