In the haze of last year’s brat chaos, pop music’s crown seemed dipped in neon green and club sweat. But this summer, Lorde reclaims the throne with What Was That – an album that feels like a confession whispered into the early morning hum of New York City. Her latest record Virgin unfolds like a secret diary: fractured love, inner conflicts and a hunger for transformation stitched into every chord.

While her tie to Charli XCX is undeniable and we listened to their featured remix last summer, this year belongs to Lorde’s quieter storm. If Charli started a bratty rebellion, What Was That will let us feel soft devastation spun into satin melodies. The album’s production balances sharp electronic edges with the organic warmth of acoustic threads. These new compositions might have their root in the fact, that Lorde no longer worked on the album with her old producer Antonoff.

Her recent breakup and rumored shift towards a raw, almost ascetic lifestyle seeps through every note. Stories of her eating disorder and wellness rituals have fueled the mythology abound her. Some questions are left unanswered but her return can be seen as a sign of a transformation filling the gaps and her will of opening up about her struggles.

The cover image captures it perfectly: an eerie X-ray of her uterus revealing an IUD, fragile yet defiant, as if to say:  Here I am: transparent, vulnerable and unafraid to show what’s broken and what’s still whole.