Album Review: Esther Rose - "Want"

With Want, Esther Rose continues to be even more than just a sufficient singer songwriter, often captivating and dazzling with her voice, storytelling, and charm. Though a little diluted, it's still an engaging listen that invites anyone who is curious to even dabble into her world.

New West - 2025

New Orleans based singer, songwriter Esther Rose has chronicled her journey over the past several years and has taken us along for the ride. Records like This Time Last Night and You Made It This Far introduced us to Rose's introspective, witty storytelling coated with her warm, comforting voice. Since then, she's quickly been channeling alt country, folk rock, further into indie pop and rock territory with her previous two records, being How Many Times and Safe to Run. The latter album is her best and most profound album yet, proving that she remains one of the indie country scene's greatest talents. With more acclaim and attention thrown onto her, a follow up was imminent. Want, her fifth studio album, comes three years after Safe to Run and she seems to be still on this path that her previous record was heading towards, further pushing her sound into something more accessible without losing her personality and charm.

Want even seems like a companion album to Safe to Run in a way, where she's still conflicting between right and wrong, her vices and her good deeds (hence the album's album art portraying her dueling selves). Dubbed as The Therapy LP, Rose is still battling demons, where she recently mentioned that she quit drinking in the album's creation process. The album's opening title track pretty much sums up the album's themes between these two sides of the coin she can't decide on, crooning lines like wanting a puppy, but not the mess, wanting to get married but not having kids, wanting to have privacy while also wanting fame. It's all backed in a sweetly sung acoustic folk rock tune that blasts off in the chorus, where she yearns to live a real life. It's an all around great song but I can't make heads or tails on its repeating chorus. It is presented like an anthemic chant and I commend its earnest emotion, but I simply find it more annoying than reassuring, especially when she reaches her higher register. I think this track could've used a different chorus, or at least an alternate take on it. "Tailspin" has nice harmonies as a duet between Rose and Video Age, showing her vulnerable side of her voice. "Had to," one of the album's best tracks, is a peppy folk rock jam about the effects of drinking too much, its deceiving benefits and her prior attachment to it. I like the edgier guitars to "Ketamine," with her lyrics comparing her attempts at healing remedies to her troublesome romantic endeavors.

"Rescue You," another album highlight, has one of the better song structures, performances, vocally and instrumentally. Its guitar work remind me of the timeless indie rock of the early 2000's. "Scars" is a classic, dark, depressed ballad with great harmonies with Dean Johnson, some of the best harmonies on the record. I like the overall vibes of "Messenger" with its moody, raw acoustic guitar playing and sharp singing. I wish it was more fully fleshed out into a fuller, more robust song structurally. It just doesn't sound finished and sounds more like a motif, especially with her repeating the song's title. "New Bad" is by far the album's best song and tops over all of Want's other tracks. It's a remarkable triumph in it of itself. It's one of her most compelling songs to date, with an intense, brooding melodies that rise and explode with pure delight. It recalls some of the best indie rock from the 90's and even has touches of shoegaze and post punk. The songwriting on "The Clown" is classic Esther Rose, painting a picture of saddened despair with wit and humor varnished over it: "heading out for a night upon the town / lipstick painted, makeup / don't they know you're a clown?" The distorted, raw piano led "Color Wheel" is a nice change of pace, which also includes one of my favorite lines: "change the colors on the wheel / tell me tell you how I feel." The album concludes with a moody "Want Pt. 2," where Rose sings directly to anxiety, pleading it to open its heart to her.

Just like the rest of her catalog thus far, Rose continues to be even more than just a sufficient singer songwriter, often captivating and dazzling with her voice, storytelling, and charm. Maybe Want dilutes a little bit in comparison to Safe to Run, but it's still an engaging listen that invites anyone who is curious to even dabble into her world. The production is there, the musicianship is solid, and the songwriting is all the more resonant. If Want is your first leg observing her journey, I suggest you to tag along for the ride, see where it takes you. You'll find a good ride with sight seeing, introspection, heartbreak and of course, some funny jokes scattered throughout.

My Rating: 7 / 10

Favorite Songs: "New Bad," "Had to," "Rescue You," "Scars," "Want"