Griff Steps Into Her Power on Debut Album, Vertigo
If Griff hasn’t yet made it across your listening radar, Vertigo is the release that will be sure to put her firmly in the ranks.
Navigating the cycles of melancholy, disorientation, euphoria, and self-discovery, Griff’s music takes fans on a coming-of-age journey that began when she broke through during the pandemic. Since then, the Herefordshire-bred twenty-three-year-old has joined huge pop sensations Dua Lipa and Taylor Swift as openers for their UK-wide shows, but it’s now Griff’s turn to fully step into the limelight.
Launching into her first full release after a string of successful EPs including The Mirror Talk and One Foot In Front of The Other, Vertigo opens with a rallying single by the same name. Released in late 2023, Vertigo balances contemporary pop elements with a touch of indie sensibility, conveying the emotional ending of a relationship with sincerity and authenticity.
Speaking to Dork after its release last year, Griff, real name Sarah Griffiths, said, “[Vertigo is a] sad, heartbreak track, and it explores the feeling of not being enough for someone. When someone leaves your life, you spend a lot of time asking if it was your fault. This song lists all those reasons why it could be, but it’s also about trying to reassure yourself that there was nothing you could have done to make it better. With the way it crescendos, I’ve always heard it as a bit of an emotional rollercoaster.”
The album allows Griff to unashamedly document universal coming-of-age themes, exploring the pain of breakups, the tumultuous journey of self-discovery, and the resilience required to emerge stronger from suffering. Each song becomes a tale of its own, detailing the raw and relatable experiences of growing up during one of the most challenging stages of life.
Moving through the album, Miss Me Too is a striking and emotionally charged track that could stand strongly as a centrepiece on its own, whilst 19th Hour encapsulates Griff’s signature sound. Astronaut, featuring piano from Coldplay‘s Chris Martin, is a delicate break from the power-packing production of the earlier part of this record.
The standout track, however, comes in the form of Fun for Tears. Obscurely tucked away amid this fourteen-track album, it’s a song that should have perhaps been given its own moment. Laden with 80s-inspired synths, walloping drums and Griff’s vulnerable lyricism, it’s a track primed for the soundtrack of a coming-of-age movie. And that’s what makes it a tough act to follow.
Vertigo and Griff don’t just recount events; they magnify them, turning individual struggles into universal anthems. This grandiosity in her lyrics serves as an exorcism of emotions, purging pain and celebrating triumphs in a way that feels both intimate and larger-than-life. With music capturing the raw and often-times messy essence of youth, Griff offers listeners not just stories, but cathartic experiences that resonate into this new era of her catalogue.
