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Billie Eilish, 'Happier Than Ever'

Billie Eilish released five singles in the long run-up to Happier Than Ever, but saved its best song for the album's drop date. The title track is really two songs in one — and, appropriately enough, it contains multitudes. Opening amid a deceptively easygoing acoustic strum, Eilish couches her devastatingly economical burns ("When I'm away from you, I'm happier than ever") in a sweet, timeless, patient vocal that wouldn't have sounded out of place at a jazz club 60 years ago. But the song fully takes off halfway through, when Eilish revs her engines — and her recriminations — to produce a burst of fuzzed-out catharsis that'd have Olivia Rodrigo pumping her fist in solidarity.

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Stephen Thompson is a host, writer and reviewer for NPR Music and Pop Culture Happy Hour. He appears frequently on All Songs Considered and NPR newsmagazines.

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