Finally Over It concludes a trilogy that
Summer Walker began with
Over It and continued with
Still Over It. "It" remains nondefinitive and can be taken to mean anything from a broken relationship to belief in the possibility of traditional lifelong companionship. The album ends with the title song, a grand celestial flourish in which
Walker breathily states that she's ready to tie the knot, but after so much preceding fraught articulation, there's a sense that she's settling, maybe even giving in, because "No one else can take it" -- the "it" most certainly meaning herself.
Walker's visual reference to Anna Nicole Smith's marriage to an octogenarian billionaire jibes with her declaration that she's done with dating for love, yet in "FMT" ("fuck my type"), the somewhat countrified ballad that leads the album's second half, she longs for "Genuine love and passionate touches, laughter -- I hate this transactional stuff." Indeed, she's still examining situations with varying outlooks, trying to make sense of her circumstances, acquiring wisdom all the while. Even though there are some familiar subjects -- betrayal, temptation, miscommunication, longing for support, and so on --
Walker writes with such specificity, insight, and wit that none of these songs come off as routine. The featured appearances tend to get in the way, especially with regard to the rotation of men on romantic duets.
Walker is generally more simpatico with the ladies, partnering with
Mariah the Scientist to gracefully upbraid a chump on "Robbed You," later preening beside
Latto and
Doja Cat on the levitating "Go Girl." Production-wise, there's little in the way of trap-style rhythms with a crew of over three dozen collaborators -- tied together by
David "Dos Dias" Bishop's involvement on a majority of the tracks -- crafting lissome ballads, slow jams, and midtempo cuts.
Walker and company skillfully reference '90s and 2000s R&B, most cleverly so on "No," a ne'er-do-well rebuke that upends
Beyoncé's "Yes" while retaining that song's seductive sonics. The shared lightness of touch among the producers suits
Walker's uncommonly exquisite and authoritative voice. While she's still going through it, her artistic power remains undiminished. ~ Andy Kellman
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