After debuting with a record that delved into dramatic dream pop, then following that with one that shifted to a hybrid of
Korn
and
Sheryl Crow
,
SASAMI
has gone unashamedly pop on
Blood on the Silver Screen
. Working with producers
Rostam
Jenn Decilveo
, she's delivered an album full of heartfelt songs that are sleek and shiny and that for the most part wouldn't sound out of place next to
Taylor Swift
on a playlist. Those that stray a little outside the pop template -- thanks to loud guitars or darker arrangements -- come closer to the left-field offerings of
Carly Rae Jepsen
or
Tegan and Sara
. Either way, it's a record that fans of her first two albums might find a little hard to swallow unless they are willing to follow her down the pop path. If they are willing, they will find that
is skilled at making pop music. She definitely has the voice for it, standing strong and pure at the center of each song while bringing on the heartbreak in understated terms. Tracks like the metal-adjacent "Love Makes You Do Crazy Things" or "For the Weekend" are imbued with melancholy and resignation, but she doesn't oversell the emotions vocally, letting the swell of the music make the point for her. These dramatic and slightly gritty songs are the ones that work the best and, luckily, they make up the core of the record. She also makes nice work of the glimmering, synth-heavy bedroom pop ballad "In Love With a Memory," where she's joined by
Clairo
, and the pair delve into light sadness with just the right amount of warmth. That song also provides one of the album's most pleasant surprises when
busts out into a classical-meets-metal guitar solo that works perfectly. ~ Tim Sendra