Girlfriend Material (stylised in lowercase) is the second studio album by English singer-songwriter Lauran Hibberd from the Isle of Wight. It was released on 22 March 2024 through Virgin Music. Production was handled by Aaron Gillespie and Suzy Shinn. It features a lone guest appearance from Alex Gaskarth.
| Girlfriend Material | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 22 March 2024 | |||
| Genre | Pop-punk | |||
| Label | Virgin Music | |||
| Producer | ||||
| Lauran Hibberd chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Girlfriend Material | ||||
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Along with the singles, music videos were released for songs "I Suck at Grieving", "Mary", "Pretty Good for a Bad Day" and "2nd Prettiest Girl (In the World)".
The album debuted at No. 17 on the Scottish Albums chart, No. 31 on the UK Albums Sales Chart, No. 27 on the UK Physical Albums Chart, No. 30 on the UK Vinyl Albums Chart and No. 12 on the UK Record Store Chart.
Critical reception
edit| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 68/100[1] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Clash | 7/10[2] |
| DIY |   [3] |
| Kerrang! | 3/5[4] |
| musicOMH | [5] |
| The Line of Best Fit | 8/10[6] |
Girlfriend Material was met with generally favourable reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 68, based on six reviews.[1]
Adam England of DIY called the album "a well-rounded collection of songs", saying it "shows Lauren as an artist coming into her own, and her enjoyment shines through in her music".[3] Christopher Hamilton-Peach of The Line of Best Fit wrote: "Girlfriend Material sees shimmer traded for increased complexity alongside a confident pop-punk presence – one that defines the album's major strength alongside a sharply served side-eye view of society".[6] Narzra Ahmed of Clash praised the album, saying "we are so here for Lauran's honesty and the way tracks like "Mary" and "Jealous" and "90's Kid" are anthemic yet personal".[2]
In mixed reviews, Emma Wilkes of Kerrang! resumed: "nonetheless, even if the follow-up to 2022's Garageband Superstar isn't wildly innovative, there's a smorgasbord of catchy tunes fizzing with sugary energy".[4] John Murphy of musicOMH stated: "it's certainly a confident step-up from Garageband Superstar and if more of Hibberd's musical personality is allowed to shine through next time around, she could produce an even better album".[5]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Suck at Grieving" |
| Aaron Gillespie | 3:58 |
| 2. | "Jealous" |
| Aaron Gillespie | 2:55 |
| 3. | "Mary" |
| Aaron Gillespie | 2:56 |
| 4. | "90's Kid" |
| Aaron Gillespie | 2:44 |
| 5. | "Happy for You" |
| Aaron Gillespie | 2:46 |
| 6. | "Better Than I Was Before" | Hibberd | Aaron Gillespie | 2:46 |
| 7. | "Anti Fragile" |
| Aaron Gillespie | 2:53 |
| 8. | "2nd Prettiest Girl (In the World)" |
| Aaron Gillespie | 2:48 |
| 9. | "Girlfriend Material" |
| Aaron Gillespie | 2:56 |
| 10. | "Pretty Good for a Bad Day" (featuring Alex Gaskarth) |
| Suzy Shinn | 3:15 |
| 11. | "So Romantic" |
| Aaron Gillespie | 2:27 |
| 12. | "Not the Girl You Hoped" |
| Aaron Gillespie | 3:54 |
- Notes
- All song titles stylised in lowercase.
Personnel
edit- Lauran Hibberd — vocals, guitar (tracks: 1, 6)
- Alex Gaskarth — vocals (track 10)
- Jess Baker — backing vocals (tracks: 4, 9), guitar (tracks: 8, 11)
- Aaron Gillespie — guitar (tracks: 1–5, 7–9, 11, 12), producer & recording (tracks: 1–9, 11, 12)
- Suzy Shinn — guitar, producer & recording (track 10)
- Danen Reed — mixing, mastering (tracks: 3, 6)
- Adam Grover — mastering (tracks: 1–5, 7–12)
Charts
edit| Chart (2024) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[7] | 17 |
References
edit- ^ a b "Critic Reviews for girlfriend material - Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
- ^ a b Ahmed, Narzra (21 March 2024). "Lauran Hibberd - Girlfriend Material | Reviews". CLASH. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
- ^ a b England, Adam (20 March 2024). "Lauran Hibberd - Girlfriend Material". DIY. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
- ^ a b Wilkes, Emma (18 March 2024). "Album review: Lauran Hibberd – Girlfriend Material". Kerrang!. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
- ^ a b Murphy, John (24 March 2024). "Lauran Hibberd - Girlfriend Material | Album Reviews". musicOMH. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ a b Hamilton-Peach, Christopher (22 March 2024). "Lauran Hibberd: Girlfriend Material Review - complex future | Rock". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 March 2023.