‘Portals’ brings Martinez’s ‘Crybaby’ era to a disappointing end (2024)

Throughout her three albums, Melanie Martinez has told the story of her character “Crybaby” through topics ranging from womanhood, toxic love, sexual assault, abandonment, and rebirth. Her most recent release, Portals, represents the “death” of this character.

Martinez’s music has tended to focus on feminist-led themes, especially focusing on girlhood, and they are typically explored through how these issues affect Crybaby. Martinez’s freshman album, Crybaby, birthed the storyline, creating the idea of thecharacter, which seems to at least partially represent Martinez.

K-12, her next project, developed this story further, with Martinez even creating an accompanying musical film to enhance the messages in the songs. Crybaby went through school-age experiences in the film, but the messages of the album were serious.

At the conclusion of K-12, Crybaby went to what seemed to be an alternate realm where she can never really die, only change forms. The character’s new “form” is revealed with the final installment of the trilogy, Portals.

The overall aesthetic of Portals portrays an alien-like style, and the character is “reborn” as an alien creature, which may symbolize Martinez’s growth as a person.

Martinez has had a promising artistic career, especially throughout the telling of this story. But unfortunately, Portals does not live up to her previous work in either the story aspect or the quality of the music.

Ironically, this album about growth represents a step backward for Martinez as an artist.

Portals, like her earlier releases, focuses heavily on feminist ideas, but many of the lyrics are so literal they are almost cringeworthy. Many tracks contain blunt lyrics about periods and pregnancy.

I believe it is important to address these taboo topics, but even as a radical feminist, I struggled to listen to these tracks.

For example, in the track “Moon Song,” Martinez sings “Baby boy, you know I’m on my period,” and then adds “Womb shedding … making room for blessings.”

The focus on the message rather than the music makes the album a hard listen, and, in many ways, weakens the point.

Portals also lacks the creativity and lyrical variety shown in Martinez’s earlier works. It feels experimental, and most of the tracks lack the distinction Martinez is known for.

One of the most beautiful parts of Martinez’s music and her stories has been her ability to create music that her listeners can connect to their own personal experiences. But this final piece of the trilogy lacks depth and interpretation. The downfall of Crybaby’s story also creates questions about the direction Martinez will take with future projects.

The world of Melanie Martinez has been a safe space for many people, so while it’s wonderful to see her growing, countless fans will be conflicted on this new era and concerned about what’s to come.