Holly Humberstone – Cruel World

Pop

84%

 

If I asked what you think of when I say the words “John Hughes movie”, odds are most of you would be on the exact same wavelength. Bittersweet synthy soundtracks, a feeling of nostalgia and romanticism, the kind of comfort movie you watch while snuggled up in a warm blanket. That warm fuzzy feeling is what people are referring to when saying that a movie or piece of music has a John Hughes vibe to it – a descriptor I myself have used many times in the past. That’s the part we remember, but it’s not the whole picture. We reduce his films to a kind of mood board, but in reality the stories they tell are full of pain, angst, ennui and frustration. The Breakfast Club isn’t all dancing in the library and fist bumping the air, most of the run time focuses on unravelling the high school drama and shitty home lives of these five troubled teens, while St Elmo’s Fire is all about entering adulthood and crumbling under the weight of all the expectations, responsibilities, and broken dreams. 

Cruel World feels like a John Hughes movie in the most complete sense. There’s a warm, comforting blanket of romanticism draped over the whole affair. The comforting swell of nostalgic synths, buoyant bass lines and bright melodic hooks, all adorning striking metaphors about how potent and all-consuming love can feel (“I wanna kiss the skin off of your cheeks“, “I want you in an IV drip“).  Yet while Holly’s sophomore album is broadly about being young and in love, it isn’t all sparks and butterflies, it draws equally from the less glamourous aspects. Obsession, jealously, anxiety, heartache. Love is messy, especially when you’re young, and so many songs and stories about it try to sweep those aspects under the rug. Yet I think embracing them, revelling in the whole spectrum, the way Holly does here, helps make it feel more real. 

‘To Love Somebody‘ reflects on how we have to take the bad with the good, as they’re both important parts of the experience of loving – all delivered with effervescent synths, an expressive bass groove, and an addictive call-and-response chorus. There’s more sublime bass work in the title track. The rhythm section pairs a Fleetwood Mac style groove with some tasteful conga drums, while the chorus features a bright trilling synth melody that could have come straight from Tango in the Night. Lyrically ‘Red Chevy’ is fit to burst with longing, while musically the production takes some notes from Bon Iver, especially when the bittersweet sax kicks in towards the end. The often frank and awkward lyricism on ‘Drunk Dialling’ really works in the context of someone feeling insecure and desperate for attention, while the introspective piano balladry of ‘Peachy’, which ponders on the pressures of being “The One” and having someone’s heart in your hands, is home to some of Holly’s most assured and affecting vocals to date. 

Much like love itself, Cruel World can be a bit messy at times. It stumbles a little out of the gate with ‘Make It All Better’. The dance beat breakdown at the end feels out of place, and some of its romantic metaphors don’t quite stick the landing (looking at you, “I need you like a teenager needs weed“). Likewise the arrangement on ‘White Noise’ feels a bit repetitive and lacklustre after a while. Yet once again, like love itself, the highs are worth the bumps in the road. Closing track ‘Beauty Pageant’ in particular is a real jewel in Holly’s crown. Stepping away from romantic themes, and instead tackling womanhood and societal expectations, it’s an opulent ballad full of theatricality and gravitas. Moments like this really show how Holly has matured and evolved as an artist, and I hope we hear more of this style from her in future. I think if the rest of the album was on the same level as this – or the incredible run of ‘To Love Somebody’, ‘Cruel World’ and ‘Die Happy‘ – we’d be looking at an all-timer of a pop record. Even as is, Cruel World has set a high bar for the rest of 2026 to follow.