Billie Eilish: the new album song by song

It was one of the most anticipated albums of the year and it will not disappoint expectations. “Hit me hard and soft”, the new album by Billie Eilish, arrived at midnight on streaming platforms all over the world, three years after the previous “Happier than ever” and five years after the dazzling debut with “When we all fall asleep , where do we go?”, is a surprising, at times even disturbing, album which sees the Los Angeles pop star reflect on the weight of success and expectations. “I feel like this album represents me. The protagonist is not a character. It's the 'When we all fall asleep, where do we go?' about me. It tells about my youth and who I was as a child”, she told Rolling Stone USA, in the only interview granted on the eve of the album's release. Finneas, his brother, a pop genius who has always been at his side, defined it as “a return” to the atmosphere of the 2019 album: “In the album there are ideas that date back to five years ago, it has a history and I really like that. When Billie talks about the 'When we all fall asleep' era, she's referring to that theatricality, the darkness. What's the one thing that no one does as well as Billie on this album? . Italian fans will be able to listen to “Hit me hard and soft” live on 8 June 2025, when the world tour arrives in our country for a single date – already sold out – at the Unipol Arena in Bologna. In the meantime, here's what it sounds like, song by song.

“Skinny”:

A song that starts from guitar and voice, with Billie musing on the weight of success and expectations: “When I step off the stage / I'm a Bird in a Cage”, “When I step off the stage I feel like a bird in a cage ”, he sings, while looking for the “old” Billie, the one who in 2019 found herself in a rather naïve way rewriting the rules of contemporary pop.

“Lunch”:

Seamlessly, a kick and an irresistible bass riff start: it's an “Ilomilo” 2.0, rougher, almost punk. Definitely sexy. It is the first song explicitly dedicated to a girl, after her coming out last December: he compares having sex with her to devouring a meal.

“Chihiro”:

Fans were able to hear a preview last April 23, when Billie Eilish's avatar debuted in Fortnite. It is inspired by the character of the same name from “Spirited Away” (“Spirited Away”), Studio Ghibili's masterpiece which in 2003 won the Oscar for “Best Animated Film”. It is another song built on a captivating bass line, but darker than “Launch”: the theme is always that of growth and change. “When I come back around, will I know what to say?”, “When I come back around, will I know what to say?”, Billie asks. In the end the synth vortex recalls the most inspired Daft Punk.

“Birds of feathers”:

The atmosphere is more sunny and open than “Chihiro”: in the construction and simplicity of the melody it seems to look to the international pop of the early 2000s. “I'll love you 'til the day that I die / 'Til the day that I die,” Billie sings in the chorus. The yearning, which is there, this time is linked to the beginning of a love affair and the difficulty of managing feelings: “And I don't know what I'm crying for / I don't think I could love you more” , “I don't know why I'm crying and I don't know if I can love you more than this.”

“Wildflower”:

A guitar and vocal piece along the lines of “Your power”. The text is enigmatic and cryptic: it seems to talk about a triangle and “limits crossed”.

“The greatest”:

Billie says she is ready to satisfy all her partner's desires: “I'm trying my best / to keep you satisfied,” she sings, with her dreamy voice in the first verses of the song. But the sexual relationship seems to be a metaphor for the relationship with the entertainment industry, which squeezes her: “Let you come and go / whatever state I'm in”, “Come and do what you want / whatever my state ”. The strings add something tragic.

“L'amour de ma vie”:

The French title is misleading, but it adds a touch of romance to a song in which Billie seems to wink at soul divas. Even in the ironic way in which she talks about the end of a love affair, without taking herself seriously: “I was the love of your life / but you were not mine”, “I was the love of your life / but you weren't mine” . More or less halfway through, the black and white atmospheres give way to synthesizers and keyboards and a pounding 90s disco beat: among the most unsettling pieces on the album.

“The diner”:

It seems to take up the melody of “I didn't change my number”. In the text she tries to imagine what would have happened if Clyde had been separated from Bonnie. Spoiler: he would have gone crazy. And in the song she tries to convey Clyde's restlessness in the throes of frenzy to get Billie back.

“Bittersuite”:

Another piece that starts one way and then halfway takes a completely different direction, perhaps to recreate the sense of destabilization felt when the success of “When we all fall asleep, where do we go?” she tore her away from the normality of being 17: in her lyrics she talks about gaps to fill, travel around the world and insomnia.

“Blue”:

It takes up verses from the other songs on the album, as in a final, anxious and claustrophobic delirium. And in the end he keeps fans on their toes: “But when can I hear the next one?”, “When will we hear the next one?”.