‘Bring Me Flowers,’ Says Tove Lo on New Album ‘ESTRUS’ …We’re Giving Her Them

Sweden born Tove Lo has a history of garnering attention through dedication to her craft—the Grammy-nominated music video for “Glad He’s Gone” is perhaps the greatest example of her imaginative approach to conveying full tales through pop music. Short track lengths throughout the new drop offer a keen intention for crafting a hooking sound, rather than limiting storytelling.

Now working as an independent artist, her roster of diva co-producers is still just as exciting on ESTRUS, with contributions by OzGo (Taylor Swift, Troye Sivan…); Betatraxx (Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Kesha, Kelis, Janet Jackson…); Elvira/Luka Kloser (The Weeknd, Addison Rae…); Oscar Holter (Christina Aguilera, Katy Perry, Robyn…). As a business slaying songwriter, Tove has also helped many now-spotlight-shining stars prove their identities (MARINA, Zara Larsson, Hillary Duff…), but ESTRUS takes her curated persona into analyzing what’s personal.

“a lot of feelings, no solutions” is a commanding introduction. The thumping, heavy bass gloats; then, distortion on the instrumentals affect her vocals which have a chopped repetition, as heard in the lead single that this opener serves as a visceral indication of. Post-interlude, it all starts really happening on track two. The lyrics may be succumbing to paranoia, but the result is anything but haphazard. A unisex-uniform, choreographed video is dazed within its dollhouse dystopia, and as the only offering to herald a remix yet, the very hyped, NYC-electronic act Fcukers contribute a tech-y groove that somehow also suits the stoned Handmaid’s Tale visual.

Airhorns announce Tove is as provocative as ever, but with an explicit maturity that feels less camp and more adult-hedonist than the material from her past release Blue Lips (Lady Wood Phase II). The eerie melancholy woven by plagued house chords manifests ritualistically for the enchantress who stays committed to a feminist approach–now more concisely than in her on-the-nose comedy-short that accompanied her “Bitches” remix version, capturing the cast (Charli xcx, Icona Pop, Alma, Elliphant…) teaching Paul W. Downs what his manhood lacked. The lead single, “I’m your girl right?” grows on you with each listen like an utter earworm.

My ultimate favorite from the album, “if I could I would” holds gorgeous layers of different approaches to performing the same heart-baring lyricism. An immediate standout that continues the same production flares already solidified by only track three, Tove Lo opens up further about her current place in her journey of self acceptance, one she may have most literally tackled on “Grapefruit,” a 2023 Dirt Femme cut. Acoustic elements are simply chances to accentuate the futuristic je ne sais quoi by contrast, and exuberance is acquired via soft spoken, cheer squad antics palatable to the likes of the algorithm powerhouse who is Olivia Rodrigo. 

Second single, “des fleurs x stromae” is the only collaboration on ESTRUS, and the rasp in Tove and Stromae’s tones complement each other powerfully. The music video relies on mystical tropes and postcard aesthetics to depict love that exists outside of the constraints of time. Track four feels inspired by her debut rhythms, likely because of the return she made to her early roots geographically when composing the album. There is a twinkling glee with its piano filigree that captures pop classically, like Lana Del Rey’s choice sampling of piano-based artist SYML on “Paris, Texas” in 2023.

The third excerpt out, ahead of the fully available record, “DNH,” is also akin to memorably edgy Tove Lo moments like “Stay High” because of its subject matter, and in my opinion, more importantly due to the signature, whirring filter consistently applied to her vocal takes by production duo The Struts/A Strut–most noticeably done since her touchstone hit “Cool Girl.” The live performance for track five is similar to the concept videos done in 2024 for the HEAT EP, matching her recent self description of ‘emo chic.’ There’s a 2010s, trashy, club anthem quality superseded by echochamber-styled prophesying. Atemporally, ’80s synths merge worlds just enough to prevent a clash of concepts, and the overarching vibe is robotic pulses for swerving down the freeway.

“F.A.M.T.” suspends droidlike pleading in the verse vocals while the choruses feel stadium anticipatory despite slower pacing. Her yelling-across-the-club antics in the background are reminiscent of Tyler, the Creator’s “IGOR’S THEME” with a ballad makeup all the more on trend thanks to keys arpeggiating, similar to A24-signed, newcomer Sophia Stel’s “Bitches Talk Shit.” The attention to detail is sensible and cements Tove as a hitmaker-brained force, something undeniable when her mere presence on works outside of her own discography stay destined to rise on charts: “Say It” with Flume, “Heroes (We Could Be)” with Alesso, “Homemade Dynamite” with Lorde, “Love Me Like You Do” with Ellie Goulding…

“I’m the cake” tackles the titular dessert as a deeper allegory of the power that comes with pop-superstardom, less revelatory in its structure than in Mitski or Melanie Martinez’s own cake tune coverage, but taken to an extra confident place like Rihanna’s “Birthday Cake.” She sings, “I’m a popstar, did you just forget? Open my legs, and I’ll show you Sweden.” By this point it’s safe to say ESTRUS is Tove’s bass-heaviest full length project, and track seven is the closest she comes to the serendipity her voice boasted when working with SG Lewis on her last extended output (HEAT). The result is curiously Dorian Electra inspired, something unsurprising as a fan who deeply enjoyed the remix pack for “I like u” which featured a rendition by the pair.

“the bad one” is another standout with cinematic/crackling strings opening a refreshing poem that almost has an unexpected Courtney Barnett quality to the deadpan. The percussion is nostalgic like Gwen Stefani’s candy coated “Bubble Pop Electric.” Then on number nine, “die for my art with a lonely heart” by way of its name, makes me think of the most infamous Carrie Fisher quote, another element adapted by the aforementioned performer Courtney Barnett on “Hopefulessness” in 2018. It also reminds me sonically of HBO’s controversial score for Euphoria which is fitting considering Tove contributed to the second season with her song “How Long.” Her vocals are pleasantly easy on the ears, performed in a lower octave and stating she has “…nothing new to say,” while recalling her Finneas-produced dread from the 2020 single, “Passion and Pain Taste the Same When I’m Weak.” 

“are we on a break” plays upon a reference possibly most associated by the public with the television series Friends,and it could very well be related in terms of media muses; as on her last record, Tove agonizingly belted the plot to the synonymous film “True Romance,” a career high point especially across its many lauded and applauded live performances. Track ten is an energized, bisexual party piece that worries about unknowns because of digital interference, and an epic climax features pitched, choral sentiments simply in its delivery, yet it is still emotive. “idiot” chooses experimentation once again, like in another bop “I like u” remix done by Melanie C/Emergency Loop. Possibly redundant in the pop genre as a whole, the one-word-repeated chorus manages to peak ferociously hard.

“roomie” unlocks with a bassline similar to that of her 2019 collab with ZAAC on “Are U gonna tell her?” which attempts to score her proof of fearlessness in the face of a big world, like Madonna did on Erotica with “Secret Garden.” The discordant cowbell and oddly composed melodies are fascinating whilst accompanying a lude, sensual discussion of nature–an indisputably fun lyrical route that Tommy Cash took on Charli xcx’s “Delicious” or Fergie on her b-side “Paradise.” 

Closing track, “source of life” ties back to the etymology of the album title which refers to mammals in heat, and in Tove’s own words goes full circle for the record, “It’s primal. It’s my mind and my body wanting different things, wanting everything. There’s no good advice on this album… just a lot of feelings, no solutions.” In track thirteen, an acapella vocalization is decisively cute like the intro of the famous Suzanne Vega hit, “Tom’s Diner,” an often interpolated classic that has been less creatively attempted by Fall Out Boy and Britney Spears/Giorgio Moroder. 

The sexual bravado of Tove Lo’s career has suited her artistry, and fearless confessions have never been far behind her stimulating presence. A world tour for ESTRUS has begun in Nashville with largely-followed, supporting acts like Rose Gray, Cobrah, and Mallrat. The extremely recent honoring of her fan-favorite ballad “9th of October,” with a filmed live performance, fits with the introspective themes that returning to her hometown for the production of this album triggered, and it also is exciting as listeners can expect a comprehensively studded setlist for the elaborate performance spectacle.

ESTRUS by Tove Lo is out now.