Despite being just 20 years old, Avery Anna has already racked up some serious success, with nearly 350 million global streams and opening for artists including BRELAND and Jordan Davis as well as heading out on her own headline tour and performing at C2C. After breaking through with her viral hit ‘Narcissist' in 2021 – which was later featured on her debut EP ‘Mood Swings' – now she's back with her first full length album, ‘Breakup Over Breakfast'.
The 17-song project opens with the title track, a poppy number which initially sees Anna singing brightly over a clipped guitar melody before a burst of rocky guitars as the story takes a dramatic turn. It's got real punch to it and a slinky yet dramatic quality, and very much sets the scene for the rest of the record. There's an immediacy about it that grabs you straight off and it feels very contemporary – I could see this quite easily working on mainstream radio.
What follows feels like that moment in a film where the main character stops and says to the camera, “You're probably wondering how I got here”. Over the next 50 minutes, Anna takes us on a deep dive into a toxic relationship, getting out of it, and getting to the other side. Songs like ‘vanilla' – an early standout which sees her talking to her younger self and cautioning against going further than she wants to – capture this really well, with its sparse arrangement, husky yet pleading vocals and sense of darkness.
For me some of the album's strongest moments are in those numbers where Anna really confronts the darker side of the story. The piano-led ‘if you wanna hurt somebody' is a great example of this as she lifts the lid on the relationship, with a softness about her delivery that enhances her ex's behaviour and makes it even more powerful. It's uncomfortable listening and, as a subject country music doesn't explore much any more, a real standout here. ‘girl next door' is another highlight which sees Anna reflecting on the rough early life of a neighbour (‘shouldn't be 13 and that exhausted') and is full of compassion and empathy alongside some great details like pets' names that really bring it all to life. I also really liked the quiet hopefulness of songs like the lush ‘Don't Be That Guy' and ‘grand canyon' with its beautiful soaring vocals, as well as the stomping drums and cinematic chorus of her duet with Dylan Marlowe, ‘I Will (When You Don't)'. Their voices pair really well together and it feels like this could be a huge hit for both of them.
It isn't entirely heavy and intense though. The grungy ‘Blame It On My Broken Heart' has echoes of Avril Lavigne with its sweeping feel and crashing drums as Anna details exactly how she'd take revenge on her ex in a way that's tongue-in-cheek enough to counter the underlying sense of threat, whilst ‘Honey' features a chorus that demands to be chanted live as she metaphorically sticks her tongue out and two fingers up at the ex who told her she was ‘too sweet for rock and roll'.
Anna also embraces other sounds on the project, particularly on ‘it's just rainin”, which has a classic country vibe that pairs a twangy, rollicking melody with smooth vocals as she denies her sadness before hitting an amazing high note at the end. Elsewhere, her collaboration with Parmalee, ‘Love You Again', has a summery feel that works well to balance the pain of an on-and-off romance and her vocals work well alongside Matt Thomas', whilst ‘party' feels like a spiritual successor to Dolly Parton's ‘Two Doors Down' with an ethereal, heartwrenching quality that sets it apart and ‘Make It Look Easy' has a biting 90s rock vibe and plenty of vocal belt. I also loved the pairing of the kiss-off ‘Blonde', a bluesy number laced with knowingness as Anna confronts a cheating lover, with the fiddle-meets-pop-punk ‘Know It All', where the playful singalong feel and sharpness of her delivery stop it tipping into bratty territory.
Anna closes the album with ‘the rest', featuring songwriters extraordinaire The Love Junkies (Lori McKenna, Liz Rose and Hilary Lindsey). An acoustic, jangly number about finding solace in the wisdom of loved ones and having faith that things will work out, it features lush, gorgeous harmonies and there's an upbeat, optimistic feel to it all that comes as a relief after the heaviness of the rest of the record. You feel like Anna has shaken off the ghosts of the past and is now looking ahead to the future, and it'll leave plenty of listeners intrigued to see where she goes.
Overall Avery Anna has delivered a brave debut album that isn't afraid to dig deep and explore those darker places, but with enough fun and energy that stops it feeling too weighty. She also shows off some very impressive vocals and a real willingness to try different things with her sound (although personally I did feel there were one too many of the rock-influenced tracks and the album could possibly have been streamlined a little in that regard). But it's a very solid start for her that should appeal to fans old and new and takes her beyond many of the new wave of country stars, and I'm excited to see what she's going to do next.
Track list: 1. Breakup Over Breakfast 2. vanilla 3. Blame It On My Broken Heart 4. it's just rainin' 5. lose you again (featuring Parmalee) 6. party 7. if you wanna hurt somebody 8. Honey 9. Don't Be That Guy 10. grand canyon 11. Make It Look Easy 12. Blonde 13. Know It All 14. I Will (When You Do) (featuing Dylan Marlowe) 15. Two Sides Of The Story 16. girl next door. 17. the rest (featuring The Love Junkies) Record label: Warner Music Nashville Release date: 19th July 2024
