Endless Summer Vacation by Miley Cyrus The Order of the 13 Tracks

Many things come with an endless summer vacation: a self-described love letter to the city of Los Angeles, a full day split into two halves (the songs on the album are titled “AM” and “PM”), a fresh start on the new Columbia Records label, and a commercial comeback thanks to lead single “Flowers” becoming Cyrus’ first Hot 100 chart-topper in nearly a decade.

 

Endless Summer Vacation by Miley Cyrus The Order of the 13 Tracks

Endless Summer Vacation, on the other hand, is an apotheosis above all else. Cyrus positions her most recent full-length as a culmination of her experiences and strengths, with a variety of sonic approaches incorporated into the mix, after spending the decade following her rise on Disney Channel experimenting with a variety of popular music styles, including hip-hop, country-pop, guitar-rock, and country-pop. Endless Summer Vacation contemplates Cyrus, one of the most talented pop artists of her generation, both where she has been and where she might go next.

Endless Summer Vacation also includes nods to the psychedelica of the Dead Petz era, the sturdy rock of Plastic Hearts, and the trap beats of Bangerz. Cyrus revisits relationships that didn’t work out, peaceful blips that should have lasted longer, and personal truths that have led her to this point as a fully self-assured 30-year-old. “Flowers” previewed the haze of the album’s overarching pop-rock approach The topics are presented with confidence, and there are only a few guests; On “Thousand Miles” and “Muddy Feet,” respectively, Brandi Carlile and Sia appear, but their voices are mostly used to support Cyrus’s voice,

which has always been a remarkable instrument but has developed even more nuance. Throughout the album, she sings with intention, giving lines that could be delivered on any standard pop song enough personality to convince the listener that Miley is the only person who can sing this.

That has always been Cyrus’ strength: no one else in pop music compares to her. And with Endless Summer Vacation, a talent that can’t be replaced unites all of her previous concepts into a single, grand statement.

So, which are the early favorites? Albeit Cyrus’ new collection is all worth investigating, here is a starter positioning of each and every melody on Interminable Summer Get-away.

Both the top-charting original and the stripped-down demo version of “Flowers” are valuable additions to the Endless Summer Vacation track list because of how the song twists its message: Cyrus sounds like she is trying to convince herself that no one can love her better than she can in the hit version of “Flowers,” which conveys pop strength through self-care. However, when Cyrus is only accompanied by a synthesizer here, she sounds like she is trying to convince herself that no one can love her better than she can. The demo take’s fragility creates a striking and fascinating contrast, even if it isn’t crucial.

The highlight of “Muddy Feet” is Cyrus’s unbridled rage, with her growls and hoarse declarations directed toward the person who is constantly dragging dirt into her tidy life before a swelling outro featuring some excellent Sia melismas. Cyrus often sounds great when unleashing her rage in the vocal booth. Compared to the other Endless Summer Vacation tracks, “Muddy Feet” seems a little incomplete due to its short duration and repeated phrases, but boy, is this one going to rip when Cyrus performs it live.

“Handstand,” a trippy synth fantasia that begins with a spoken-word psych-out that includes the line “My friend Big Twitchy rode the boat to the light,” before delving into a clipped, surprisingly catchy breakdown, will likely serve as your litmus test for how you personally feel about Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz. Depending on your perspective of the track list, “Handstand” could be misplaced in the heart of Endless Summer Vacation or exactly at home as the meltdown of the album’s Side A; it is knowingly messy and captivating in its weirdness. Regardless, Cyrus deserves praise for never abandoning her freak flag.

Think of “Wildcard” as the grown-up version of “Can’t Be Tamed” by Miley Cyrus: She will never be defined, even after rejecting the various categories popular culture and modern society attempted to place her in for many years (“Maybe I could stay and not break your heart / But don’t forget, baby, I’m a wildcard”) in relation to domesticity. The snares complement Cyrus’ self-deprecating statements on “Wildcard,” which serves as a vocal showcase late in the album before giving way to showy synths on the high-powered hook.

“Island” offers an unexpected softness on an album full of compelling declarations about who Cyrus is and what she wants: Sure, there are feelings of missing a partner, but when Cyrus sings, “No one here needs nothin’ from me, and it’s kind of nice,” the listener can hear one of the most prolific pop artists of the last ten years relax a little bit. Cyrus shines as the song’s star, and producer BJ Burton, who oversees a gorgeous mix, is to be commended for the song’s breezy tone.

On “Rose Colored Lenses,” where the production recalls the guitar-rock chug of her Plastic Hearts era before landing on a saxophone solo, Cyrus perfectly captures the feeling of sprawling out and nestling into a comfortable setting. “Let’s stay like this forever,” she breathes, as if hypnotizing her subject. The second verse of “Rose Colored Lenses” has the title “Endless Summer Vacation,” which makes sense: Here, Cyrus is pleading for a warm moment in time to endure forever.

Although Brandi Carlile is brought in to deliver some yearning harmonies about nagging regrets and too-late calls, “Thousand Miles” initially resembles a straightforward country song due to the inclusion of the phrase “beat-up old Mercedes” in the first couplet. However, a closer look reveals a morphing sonic tapestry with grand piano, harmonica, guitar, and programmed drums pushing the song somewhere between synth-pop and Americana; The power of “Wonder Woman,” the tearjerking piano ballad that serves as the final non-demo song on the Endless Summer Vacation track list, lies in its universality: Regardless of its genre classification,

“Thousand Miles” recalls the twangy Cyrus masterclass “The Climb.” When Cyrus sings, “She’s a million moments / Lived a thousand lives / Never know she’s hopeless / Only when she cries,” she could be referring to a pop star who has had to charm the general public over a number of album eras or a woman who is forced to bear too much in a society that isn’t perfect. Wonder Woman” connects people who are looking for it, and Cyrus sounds great as the piano notes keep going, drawing out every line and making sense of every moment.

On the Endless Summer Vacation track list, “Jaded” follows “Flowers” in reflecting on a breakup, this time focusing on Cyrus’ ex-boyfriend rather than herself: She sings, “You’re alone now, and I hate it,” despite her lingering worry that the breakup was necessary. “Jaded,” the only track on this album that was produced by Greg Kurstin, expresses sadness through the echoes of bending guitar lines before flexing its resolve during a grand, affecting chorus.

“River” is being positioned as Cyrus’ potential follow-up smash to “Flowers” for a reason: The song’s synth-pop flourishes and sexual undertones are handled with funk and personality, and Cyrus chooses to sing in a sashaying monotone on the verses to counteract the “ooh-ooh-OOH!” excessiveness of the chorus. The foundation of “River” is similar to the shimmering pop-rock tone of “Flowers,” but the intricate production keeps pushing the tempo, resulting in a dance track that will be heard at many parties this summer.

As Cyrus’ “Flowers” has become his longest-running hit on the Hot 100 in recent weeks, its appeal has only grown stronger. It seems as though the song’s major-key chorus and tabloid rumors launched it as a hit in early 2023, but then the lavish details, like the strings and the shuffle after the chorus, helped the song stay at No. 1. 1. Although Cyrus has had more flashy hits, few of them have been as complete as this one, and the song “Flowers” sings with its stadium-sized melodies and refined subtleties.

Cyrus collaborated on the song “Violet Chemistry” with Mike WiLL Made-It, Sia, Jesse Shatkin, Maxx Morando, and Max Taylor-Sheppard. The song’s cacophony of ideas was somehow streamlined into a sleek, singular synth-pop wallop. On the song “Forget About Tomorrow,” Cyrus performs admirably, with her voice commanding at times and pleading at others. “Violet Chemistry” is both the longest and best song on Endless Summer Vacation thanks to its extended bridge, where Cyrus transforms sex into a Monetian simile while the production is simplified to focus on the beats and bass.

Cyrus was able to achieve a goal that was subtly granted by Plastic Hearts: She had clearly mastered her own brand of pop ballads if you looked beyond the more upbeat singles to the piercing tracks like “High” and “Angels Like You.” One album later, “You” is a love-struck waltz that adheres to the same principles as those tracks. It approaches its hook, an ode to unconditionally embracing a flawed partner, with tenacity and verve, and is brimming with lyrical gems (“I wanna cut off my hair and kick off my boots / Dance in the wind just to do it again”). A song like “You” is so unique in its effectiveness because Cyrus’s personality matches her ballads.

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