Alec Guarino

Contributing Writer

arg6267@psu.edu

Concept albums are usually either hit or miss, and “five seconds flat” by Lizzy McAlpine was a big hit among indie fans. For her second full-length studio album, Lizzy experimented with her production more, collaborating with unique producers and artists such as Jacob Collier, FINNEAS, Ben Kessler, and Laura Elliot. Lizzy can collaborate with 4 artists on this album while still maintaining a clear concept. Lizzy touches on longing, grief, and the impact of memories all while following the concept album’s story of her relationship coming to an end.

Lizzy starts off the album with the song “doomsday,” which sets up the exposition of the album. Throughout the song, we hear Lizzy compare the end of her relationship to a funeral. During the breakup, Lizzy claims to have no part in the matter, not wanting to break up. She compares this to not having control over when her funeral is, wishing she could prepare for these important moments in her life, but not having control over them due to other factors. This is the meaning behind the title of the track! Lizzy follows this up with the track “an ego thing.” This second track discusses the back-and-forth of an argument Lizzy is having. Lizzy says “It’s a battle but I think I’m winning, something makes me think you think that too.” This tells us that both of them have big egos, and won’t admit to being wrong. This likely caused tension between the two during the relationship, giving us even more context as to why they may have broken up. After “doomsday” sets up the scene for us, Lizzy provides us with her thoughts and feelings about fading out of touch with her ex. This brings us to the next track on the album “erase me.” This song is the most introspective on the album so far, talking about how her ex is fading out of her life. Lizzy confirms this by saying “Now you’re fading, and I wonder who will erase me?” She recognizes that as people drift out of her own life, she must be drifting out of other people’s lives as well. Skipping a few tracks ahead, we have “reckless driving.” This song discusses how during their relationship, Lizzy wanted to take things slow and safe, while her ex wanted to take things fast and take risks. She compares him to a reckless driver while calling herself a careful driver. This is a clear and direct connection to their relationship. The biggest hit from the album “ceilings” follows a storyline of Lizzy and a guy going on adventures and wasting time together. During the first half of the song, she sets up a lovely relationship and compares it to “a movie she’s seen before.” Toward the end of the song, Lizzy reveals none of what she was singing about in the first half was real, and was all in her head. Once we get to “firearm,” we hear her frustration and resentment about the breakup. This song has more anger behind it than the others, with lines like “What a shame I can see it all now that we’re through” and “I don’t feel like talking, but everyone else does.” This song taking place after the relationship has ended allows Lizzy to write with hindsight, touching on problems she didn’t realize existed until after the relationship was over. 

Something else that keeps the concept of this album clear is Lizzy constantly referencing lyrics and concepts from previous songs on this album. The phrase “what a shame” is repeated many times throughout the album, which also happens to be the title of a track on this album. Lizzy also ends the last song on this album with the title of the project “five seconds flat” as lyrics before closing the album. Subtle touches like this can take an album from good to great. Lizzy McAlpine also released a short film alongside this album, hoping to convey the story of each song as clearly as possible. The short film adds to the layers of the story and makes this album an overall great listen.