Maggie Rogers

Revealed in 2016 thanks to a viral video of a Pharrell Williams moved by hearing one of his first songs, the American Maggie Rogers was propelled almost instantly into the star system musical. On his second album, Surrendershe tries to reclaim her own story by adopting a little more rock textures, even if her penchant for radio pop is never far away.

The legend of the “discovery” of Maggie Rogers remains misleading. Like many myths, it is a simplification of the truth. Admittedly, it’s true that the Maryland-born singer-songwriter achieved viral success with her song. Alaskawhich she would have composed in just 15 minutes before singing it in front of Pharrell Williams who came to give a master class at his school. However, when told in this way, this myth suggests that success fell on his head, relegating to the shadows the years of work invested to get there.

In fact, Rogers had already recorded two folk albums before being “discovered” by Pharrell Williams. She also knew how to keep a cool head when all the majors were fighting to get her under contract. Recruited by capitolshe continues to release her music under her own label Debay Sounds. She also took her time before launching a first album, while we guess that the great decision-makers of Capitol would have liked to strike the iron when it was still hot. However, she first released an EP in 2017 before launching the album Heard It in a Past Life in 2019.

Continuing the pop path of its predecessor, but with a more personal and assured tone, Surrender is also the result of a long gestation period. In 2021, Rogers registered for a MA program in Religion and Public Life offered by Harvard University. Her dissertation on the spirituality of large public gatherings and the ethics of power in pop culture is inseparable from her new album, she argues. Both projects share the same title, even if the music is self-sufficient. In fact, make no mistake about it. Despite this quest for spirituality, Surrender is a resolutely pop album, carried by an efficient, but somewhat flashy production co-signed by Kid Harpoon, known for his work with names like Harry Styles and Shawn Mendes.

There where Surrender particularly hits the target, it’s in its intensity. The voice of Rogers is of a strength that fits perfectly with his talent for choruses to sing the fist in the air. It gives irresistible crescendos, as in the powerful Anywhere with You, which evokes Florence + Machine. Florence Welch also makes an appearance on the song Shatterwhich tends towards new wave with arrangements and sounds inherited from the 80s à la Future Islands.

Whether Heard It in a Past Life sometimes gave the impression of forcing the note to make sure to coat his pop with a clean varnish, Surrender sounds more like the album than Rogers wanted to do. It gives more abrasive moments like on the very successful Overdrive in the opening, when the distorted guitars take over. But it also gives ballads felt like the pretty horseson which she seems to wonder both about the quest for fame and about a love that prevents her from being free:

“Took me all this long to figure out

It’s not worth it if I can’t touch the ground

Can’t believe I let you turn me ’round

Waiting up for you”.

horses

There are, however, times when the somewhat flashy production doesn’t do justice to the quality of the compositions. The abuse of small vocal interjections on That’s Where I Am quickly becomes tiresome, while the pop-rock fire Want Want looks like it was designed to play Virgin Radio. Fortunately, the disc ends with three particularly formidable titles, including the excellent Symphonymy favorite.

Finally, Maggie Rogers takes up the challenge of offering a work that is both personal and for the general public, where his intense voice becomes a real vector of emotions. Yes, she sometimes puts on a little too much, but you can never doubt her sincerity.

Maggie Rogers – Surrender