Music Review: Suki Waterhouse's indie-pop shines and bares fangs on 'Memoir of a Sparklemuffin'

Suki Waterhouse is everywhere at once. A year after the hit show “Daisy Jones and the Six” reintroduced her music talents to a new audience, the indie-pop singer-songwriter-model-actress-entrepreneur opened for Taylor Swift on her record-breaking Eras Tour at London's Wembley Stadium. Now, Waterhouse has unveiled her second studio album, a sprawling 18-track release that never outstays its welcome and features plenty of shining moments.

“Memoir of a Sparklemuffin” is a vaguely ridiculous album title, referring to a colorful breed of jumping spider. But it is an apt metaphor for her musical persona — unapologetic, iridescent, and not afraid to bare fangs from time to time.

Waterhouse barnstorms through the opening third of the album with six songs that each run under three minutes. Opener “Gateway Drug” begins with spacious chords and mournful vocals and builds to a waltz-y crunch of garage guitar. “Supersad” ups the tempo with high vocals over a club-ready wall of guitar and synth sounds.

The single “Blackout Drunk” is an instant earworm, destined to be the most enduring track. The catchy girl-group vocals and sharp handclaps belie darker themes. She sings, “Cause I can hardly wait to tell you all the s——- things that you’ve done/When you’re up b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-blackout drunk.”

Waterhouse enlisted over a dozen writers, producers and as many instrumentalists to collaborate with her on the project. The co-credits read like a mission statement of the musical territory to be covered: Jonathan Rado (known for his work with Father John Misty, Beyoncé ), Brad Cook (Bon Iver, The War on Drugs ), Rick Nowels (James Blake, Lana Del Rey ) and Cigarettes After Sex’s Greg Gonzalez.

Executive producer Eli Hirsch was instrumental behind the scenes, lending his own contributions on guitar, bass, keyboards and percussion. It is a high-wire act to work with so many, and it wouldn’t work without Waterhouse’s vocal dexterity. Throughout the release, she slides comfortably between ‘60s pop, ’70s hippie jams, '90s alternative and contemporary alt-rock.

“Faded” drifts into dreampop territory. The song starts with a lyrical flourish, “You used to call me Yoko cause I made a joke that all your friends are leaving.”

The following track, “Nonchalant,” maintains the mood with a jangle that evokes The Sundays.

Waterhouse shifts gears again with “My Fun,” which opens with her singing about the nostalgic touch of summer: “Blood on the grass, blood on my knees.” Like “Blackout Drunk,” the song was co-written by Natalie Findlay of the band Ttrruuces. Their collaboration summons Woodstock-era folk rock, complete with a goofy tooting flute.

Given the breadth of creative inputs and the high profile of the artist’s personal life, it is hard to discern the degree to which “Memoir of a Sparklemuffin” is, well, a memoir. The album certainly offers glimpses; the melancholic “Model, Actress, Whatever” seems somewhat literal and specific to her experience.

Regardless of where the terrestrial Suki ends and the “Sparklemuffin” persona begins, the variety and pacing of the release make it enjoyable all the way through.

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