Olivia O’Brien’s "Sociopath": Masochistic Lust, Slasher-Flick Catharsis & Satanic Sweet-Whispers

Written by Caitlin Joy

Graphic by Rebekah Witt

Iconic is an adjective I (perhaps excessively) tend to use to describe effectively, any media I enjoy, but alas, for once, I am employing it in its purest semantic form to precisely summarize Olivia O’Brien’s most recent release, “Sociopath.” As a pertinent preface, I have been an avid apostle at the temple of Ms. O’Brien since her scintillatingly vulnerable debut EP, 2017’s “It’s Not That Deep”: her themes are profoundly sympathetic, lyrics incisively piquant, sound dreamily hypnotizing, and aesthetic imaginatively polished. “Sociopath” is a decidedly formidable addition to her uber-relatable repertoire—a punchily crimson lament, chronicling an emotionally unfulfilling relationship, of which Olivia is acutely aware is toxic but cannot seem to abandon.

She parallels the hurt of a habitually impassive partner and the pain, inflicted by their absence and customary discourtesy, with the imagery of a gory horror film (‘With blood on your hands,’ ‘Hands on my neck’), symbolizing her personal ache and distress with gruesome cinematic analogies. When distilled to its emotional core, “Sociopath” details the hauntingly tragic condition of being unconditionally enamored with a cruel, uninvolved individual who siphons all of one’s effort, spirit, and elation without replenishing the voids, unfairly a familiar sentiment for many. 

The single’s sound aptly reflects its eerie, sinister ethos, sampling its first few bars from the climax of Alfred Hitchcock’s exalted Psycho, prior to gliding into a minor key, panicked, dissonant notes, a static, high-pitched sonic motif, and a tension-swelling arrangement (primarily evident, in the chorus and pre-chorus). Amidst the frightful conventions of a classic slasher-flick soundtrack, Olivia upholds her established signatures: graceful, effervescent vocals, passionate, energetic 808 beats, a lively, vibrant rhythm, driving, stirring melodies, and an irresistibly memorable hook (‘A cold-blooded sociopath’).

Alongside the single’s release, Olivia O’Brien unveiled the accompanying music video: an exaggeratedly camp short film depicting a girls’ night gone ghastly disastrous, as a vicious, frenzied murderer—revealed to be, an obscure beau our protagonist has been romantically pursuing—has appeared and is gradually staging death scenes for all in attendance. Visually mirroring the concept, structure, and iconography of actorly, cult-cherished slasher films from the latter 20th century: chiefly, teen-ensemble features Scream, Halloween, and Friday the 13th, the film is a theatrically literal interpretation of sociopath’s bloody metaphors, written and directed by Amber Pak. Imbued with wit, biting parody, and razor-sharp dialogue, the cast, largely composed of recognizable social media influencers, haplessly attempt to survive the night in clever, palpable satire, with Olivia emerging as the sole “final girl” to exact her graphic, brutal revenge upon the overpowered assailant. 

Its avant-garde, highly referential art direction continues the progression of Olivia’s exploration through modern historical phenomena and their distinct, memorable aesthetics, within her most recent singles: “NOW” takes inspiration from glamorous 2000’s pop-culture media, “Better Than Feeling Lonely” the chic 1960’s mod movement, and “Josslyn” the independent 1990s alternative subculture.

Olivia O’Brien will be releasing her sophomore album, Episodes, in dual parts, with Part 1 featuring “Sociopath,” being introduced to audiences in May of this year. 

Of the title, Olivia expounds twofold: “It feels like my life consists of sporadic, mismatched episodes from various, unrelated TV shows. Some days I’ll wake up in a lighthearted comedy movie and fall asleep in a tear-jerking coming of age drama.”

Inversely, “the word ‘episodes’ often brings something else to mind: periods of struggle with mental and emotional distress. I’ve been through many of those kinds of episodes but I try to find the positive in every situation and aspect of my life.”

Olivia’s musical anthology thus far has compassionately discussed an abundance of complexly poignant and formidably sincere matters —including mental illnesses, disorderly feelings, internal conflicts, societal pressures, unhealthy relationships, and destructive coping mechanisms—providing a soothing solace for listeners who battle with similar issues. The idea of contextualizing one’s life as a collection of episodes, diverse and often in utter contrast with one another, is a fascinating, fairly philosophical approach to navigating the turbulent inconsistency of existence itself, and I, a faithful worshipper, am incredibly excited to perceive how unfeigned icon, Olivia O’Brien, manifests the concept this spring!