“I think there’s a mold in my brain,” 22-year-old Sophie Allison aka Soccer Mommy, muses on her kaleidoscopic single “circle the drain,” all while a catchy guitar strums over the track. Allison lets the good, the bad and the ugly sides of memory flood her sound in her sophomore album color theory.

Coming off her successful debut, Clean (2018), Allison dives into deeper and darker material with color theory, playing with the concept of nostalgia and how it warps our perception of memories, complemented by a throwback alt rock sound similar to the likes of Liz Phair or Sheryl Crow. 

Allison has said she wanted the album to feel like finding a dusty old cassette tape that has become messed up over time. This feels especially true on tracks like “night swimming,” a gorgeous track featuring her wavering vocals about a lost relationship, as they weave through distorted sounds of a chattering crowd. 

Many of color theory’s songs melt into a somewhat sunny disposition while revealing a much darker undercurrent within its lyrics that’s not completely explained to the listener. It’s a deep and engrossing album that pushes the artist known as Soccer Mommy into fascinating territory. 

Best Track: “night swimming”

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