Suki Waterhouse|Memoir of a Sparklemuffin

Memoir of a Sparklemuffin Suki Waterhouse

Released on 9/13/24 by Sub Pop Records
Main artists: Suki Waterhouse
Genre: Pop

Available in

24-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo

Unlimited Streaming

Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps

Start my trial period and start listening to this album

Enjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription

Digital Download

Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.

Who is Suki Waterhouse? It depends on who you ask. To some, she is a Taylor Swift tour opener. Others remember her as a model who was in the swirl of the London alt-rock scene in the early 2010s. She's also an actress who, charmingly, played a singer in the series Daisy Jones and the Six. In other words, she's a multi-hyphenate, but, as shown on her second album, shouldn't be written off as a dilettante. Waterhouse is an interesting songwriter with a light and lovely voice and a few surprises up her sleeve on Memoir of a Sparklemuffin. The title illustrates her sense of humor; though sparklemuffin sounds like a synonym for pop tart, it's actually a recently discovered species of tiny spider that, as Waterhouse describes it, "is wildly colored, does this razzle-dazzle dance, and its mate will cannibalize it if she doesn't approve of the dance. It's a metaphor for the dance of life we're all in." The singer, who was in the last few months of pregnancy as she finished the record, adds: "I wanted a totem of metamorphosis, but I didn't feel like a butterfly. I felt more like a scrappy spider." In finding herself, she tries on different personae—the mostly quick (under three-minute) songs play out as vignettes, with Waterhouse embodying various parts. Caffeinated, perky "Blackout Drunk"—"buh-buh-buh-buh-buh-buh-blackout drunk"—feels pleasingly retro: both to '60s girl-group pop and mid-aughts U.K. alt-girl pop (Lily Allen, the Pipettes, Kate Nash). There are hints of Natalie Imbruglia tenderness on "Nonchalant" and "Faded," which layers on clean strings as she addresses someone from the past. "I was still in primary school/ when people thought your band was cool/ It's hard to imagine being so fucking naive," Waterhouse sings. (She's had a couple of indie-rock boyfriends this could be about.) She has said that "Model, Actress, Whatever"—with orchestral instruments sighing alongside her as a classical ballad melody evokes "I Can't Help Falling in Love With You"—was inspired by "very niche" punk-rock socialite Jennifer Blowdryer. "Think Twice," a bit of country rock, could be an outtake from Daisy Jones. Mod-folky "My Fun" grooves on '60s sunshine. Stylish "OMG," rich and toothsome "Big Love," and "Gateway Drug"—dreamy with a kick—are catchy fun, and self-empowerment anthem ("Wash my face, fix my hair/ Swear to God I'm over being so damn scared") "Supersad" is sugar-coated power pop. Waterhouse locates the intersection of Mazzy Star and Lana Del Rey on "To Love," "To Get You" and the deeply melancholic piano ballad "Everybody Breaks Up Anyway." And "Lawsuit," she admits, draws on reality. Catchy and coy, leaning on a little neo-soul flirtation and high-end yacht guitar, it finds Waterhouse turning a gimlet eye on a famous #MeToo creep. "You kinda let the whole world down/ I heard all about you/ From the girls in line in the bathroom," she sings before twisting the knife: "Good luck with that lawsuit." © Shelly Ridenour/Qobuz

More info

Memoir of a Sparklemuffin

Suki Waterhouse

You are currently listening to samples.

Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.

From $10.83/month

Gateway Drug