Song Review: “Woman Like Me”- Looking into Adele’s 30

Adele’s newest album cover.

Pitchfork.com

Adele’s newest album cover.

Gabriela Danger, Opinion Editor

Whether you like her or don’t like her, you’ve probably heard at least one song from Adele’s new album, 30.

Maybe it was “Easy on Me,” or “Oh My God,” but one that I haven’t heard circulating the radio waves was “Woman Like Me.”

Most people know a couple Adele songs, like “Rolling in the Deep” or maybe “Chasing Pavements.” Personally, I’ve been listening to at least some of Adele’s significantly sized discography since I was a little kid, because my mom would put her on all the time. Whatever you know about this artist, it’s safe to say that she has mastered her style and sound throughout her various albums.

Many of the songs that have gotten lots of radio play share a few common musical themes: a heavy piano accompanied by Adele’s powerful vocals and a strong chorus.

However, this song, “Woman Like Me,” wasn’t really like the others at all. I had never heard it, so I had to find it for myself to listen to it.

This song features a gentle guitar, with Adele’s voice softly on top. In this song, she takes a slightly different approach to her voice. Usually, Adele is known for her strong and heavy voice that usually overshadows anything else going on in the song. But this track is a lot different than what I’m used to hearing from her.

Instead of the usual chorus, verse, chorus, verse, eighth bridge, chorus and finish, “Woman Like Me,” is more like Adele just talking to us. Or, more likely, to the person this album is about.

While the song has a distinct chorus, I feel like Adele got a lot more personal on this track just in the way she sang. All of Adele’s songs are for the most part very personal as many of her albums deal with telling us anecdotes from her love life. In this case, “Woman Like Me” is an anecdote and then some.

She sings in a low and gentle voice, different from the way she usually harmonizes on other songs. It’s like I’m sitting around a bonfire with her and she’s just telling me a story about her in song form.

Essentially, the song is Adele telling us and whoever the album is about that she is different from other women he has been with, that her love is serious and ready to be reciprocated. She wants the listener to understand that she isn’t messing around and that the relationship can’t continue if the person in question doesn’t make his feelings clear as well.

“Complacency is the worst trait to have…”, in other words, I don’t want to keep this casual, and I really love you,” from Adele. She knows it may be intense, but she doesn’t want to be in a directionless relationship any longer.

In this way, the softness of the song contrasts with the message she wants to convey. While her voice and the guitar is gentle, her feelings are not. She wants an answer.

So to me, this track stands out a lot from the theme of 30, which is generally dealing with Adele’s feelings in the wake of her divorce from her longtime husband. This theme is easily palpable in “Easy on Me,” if you’ve heard it.

I think that’s part of why I really enjoyed the song. I like when artists throw a monkey wrench into the narrative they’re trying to tell. Maybe this song was written before, or maybe it’s about someone else. Obviously, I don’t know because I’m not Adele, but the fact remains that Adele is still out there keeping her name alive after some time away from the industry, trying something different on her album and putting her name back on the map. I find that very admirable and the song to be intriguing.

So, if you enjoy Adele’s music, or even if you just want to try something new, take a listen to “Woman Like Me.” It’s available wherever you can find Adele’s music.