8/10

The best thing about 'Forever Fool' is that Trinity Bliss refuses to pretend she has figured any of this out. Her sophomore album lives inside the rush of adolescence rather than looking back on it with the benefit of hindsight. Crushes are still overwhelming, uncertainty still feels enormous, and every romantic possibility seems capable of becoming either a fairytale or a disaster. It's an immediacy that gives the record a pulse that feels difficult to fake.

Across its ten tracks, Bliss turns overthinking into bright, melodic indie-pop. ‘chemistry’, ‘will they won’t they’ and ‘i like like you’ capture the almost ridiculous intensity of early attraction, when tiny interactions can take on outsized meaning. The writing is witty and self-aware, as she understands how funny these emotional spirals can look from the outside while still treating them seriously from within.

Musically, the record moves through polished pop, dreamy harmonies and touches of folk-inspired storytelling, with enough melodic confidence to keep the record buoyant even when the lyrics start circling doubt and insecurity. There's a clear instinct for hooks throughout, but also an attention to narrative that makes the songs feel connected rather than merely collected.

But rather than presenting growing up as a steady progression towards certainty, she embraces the contradiction of wanting to become wiser without becoming guarded; allowing excitement, embarrassment, confidence and doubt to coexist at every turn.

'Forever Fool' is bright, restless and emotionally generous pop about being unfinished, and discovering that being unfinished might actually be the point.