On Feb. 24, 2025, Canadian pop star Tate McRae released her junior album, “So Close To What.” With16 songs and just over 45 minutes, McRae’s latest album is just… fine.
The album opens with “Miss possessive,” which starts with a spoken intro from actress Sydney Sweeney telling listeners to “get your hands off my man.” It’s a predictable song based on the title, with McRae telling other women to stay away from her man.
“Revolving door” allows McRae to dig a little deeper. The song discusses not being able to get over someone, even saying that Tate has to move towns (or even countries) to be able to stay away from her ex. She can’t think about anything else, so she keeps going back. The bridge gives the song more variety than the last track.
Track three, “bloodonmyhands (Feat. Flo Milli)” gives the album some much-needed texture. It’s a surface-level song about getting screwed over by a man, but Flo Milli’s rap verse breaks up McRae’s usual pop flow and compliments it at the same time. The switch up gives the song more energy and texture, and some lyrics that are less mumbly than McRae’s usual style.
“Dear god” slows the album down a bit. The issue with this song is the repetition. Each verse ends the same way, with McRae sitting “with my hands on my chest and my knees on the carpet.” The only variety in this song is the outro when it slows down to blend into the next song.
If listeners haven’t gotten bored of the repetitiveness of the first four songs, track five offers up something new. “Purple lace bra” could be interpreted as McRae’s issues with a man who only wants her for sex, or as a critique of how the media over-sexualizes female stars. McRae tells the subject of the song that they “only listen when I’m undressed” and that she’s losing her mind because “giving you head’s the only time you think I got depth.” This man, or the media, only hears what they want and nothing else. But the message behind this song gets lost behind the rest of the album that is all about men and McRae’s dating struggles.
Track six, “Sports car,” was released as one of the album’s lead singles in January. It’s another bare bones song about McRae’s desire for a casual relationship with a guy she meets. Track 14, another single, “2 hands,” is the same. McRae doesn’t want to talk. She just wants a casual, fun time.
Seventh on the album, “Signs” shows McRae’s frustration with a lack of communication and mixed signals from a man. Tate wants this man to know her better and read the signs that she gives, instead of needing her to spell out exactly what she wants. Track nine, “Like I do,” is “Signs” part two. McRae is sick of a man who doesn’t put in effort to get to know her beyond her surface. The two songs have very similar production and structure and are hard to tell apart.
“I know love (feat. The Kid LAROI)” brings in McRae’s boyfriend as a feature. It’s a bit of a different structure since it actually has a bridge, and it details how the two singers went from friends to lovers. It’s a great song for couples in the honeymoon phase since it compares the high of a budding relationship to the high of a drug.
Another one of the album’s lead singles, “It’s ok, I’m ok,” goes in a different direction. It’s a slap in the face to her ex and his new girl. It’s faster-paced than other songs on the album, but still holds the same predictable pattern. It’s catchy and fun to hear McRae tell this new girl that she can take her ex, but she says it over and over again for two and a half minutes.
“No I’m not in love” puts denial over a beat that sounds the same as the song before. It’s a way for McRae to tell everyone that she’s not in love with this guy, even though she’s sleeping at his house six times a week, wearing his clothes and looking up his exes. It’s as predictable as the others, but relatable lyrics give it some edge over the others. In “Means I care” McRae has accepted that she’s into this guy, but she doesn’t want to be. It’s the next step from “No I’m not in love,” featuring all of the same production elements you’ve heard before.
On “Greenlight,” Mcrae is stuck. She’s interested in a new guy, but her ex is holding her back. She wants to commit, but her inability to move on from a past love keeps her from this new one. This track sounds sadder than the others, but the monotonous chorus makes it hard to invest in.
“Siren sounds” is labeled as a bonus track for… some reason. It has the most unique production on the album and was almost released with McRae’s “THINK LATER” album in 2023. It’s about McRae watching her relationship fall apart around her, and it has a much deeper sound than the rest of the tracklist.
The last track, “Nostalgia” lives up to its name. Tate is back on the guitar, which listeners haven’t heard much of since her earlier albums. This song is more raw and more emotional than anything else off “So Close to What.” McRae grapples with her family’s regrets and lost dreams and confronts her own in the process. She’s gained success in the music industry, but the fame can be scary. You never know what could happen if you lose it, and McRae opens up to her audience to tell them that.
“So Close to What” has so much potential, but it’s just not great. Aside from a few notable songs like “Purple lace bra” and “Nostalgia,” all of the songs blend together. The beats and instrumentals are nearly identical, and the lyrics are surface-level. It’s 45 minutes of the same production and themes, so it’s not something to seek out. It’s a fun pop album to put on in the background while you drive or do homework, but it’s nothing phenomenal.