In praise of Sharpest Tool (a fall music preview)

I break down my current obsession with a certain Sabrina Carpenter track and share my fall playlist.

Sep 23, 2024

Can you feel that? The chill in the morning, the back-to-school vibes, the earnestness in this sentence … yes, it’s finally fall. In New York, this weekend brought some of the coolest temperatures we’ve seen since spring, with many of us living our Carrie Bradshaw “I Heart NY” moments on Sunday as we enjoyed our first day of decent weather after a blisteringly hot summer. Soon the leaves change, shorts will be put away (well, the way the climate has shifted you can keep those out until November), and our cultural appetites will shift. For television, many shows have already returned, awards season is just beginning for film, and for music, like every year, we’re officially in fall vibes mode.

Song of the Summer, a tried and true battle, was hard-fought this year, with plenty of solid contenders. In my view (and most), Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” won that battle. It was everywhere, and as summer winds down, we’re all little Carpenters, aren’t we? Her other singles may have scored better chart success, but “Espresso” was the catalyst, capturing our playlists, pregames, and the lexicon (“that’s that me espresso” is eternal).

But what about Song of the Fall? Doesn’t have the same ring to it, surely, but fall music is certainly a thing. A feeling. It’s Forks, Washington. The Cullens baseball game. Getting lost in the woods. Lorelai Gilmore. Acoustic guitar. Deep synths. Red scarves. I’ve written about this before. Every year we come alive again in the fall. We’re reborn. With the seasonal change around us, we accept and often hope for some transformation within ourselves. It’s far too early to predict what will ultimately grab hold of me musically for the next few months, but I’ve never cared much about being too early, and already know what personally will be on repeat.

For me, Carpenter wins another round with “Sharpest Tool.” The track was an immediate standout for me off her massive late summer album, “Short n’ Sweet.” Much has been made of how fantastic the album is, a concise and tight pop offering in a year filled with many. But we’re focusing on track 4.

It’s perfect pop alchemy for me, and a true highlight on the album in its vulnerability without losing Carpenter’s signature wit and perspective.

I can hear you now: “But “Taste,” Jared! “Juno!” “Bed Chem!?!” To which I say, “yes, yes and yes!” Still, “Sharpest Tool” is simply that girl. It’s perfect pop alchemy for me, and a true highlight on the album in its vulnerability without losing Carpenter’s signature wit and perspective. It’s a peak into specific moments, letting us into her heart more than most tracks on the record.

“I know you’re not the sharpest tool in the shed,” she croons at the top of the track, recalling sex, meeting best friends, and soft heys. One of the Jack Antonoff and Amy Allen tracks on the album, it starts in a country-tinged sonic landscape, a world she revisits later on “Slim Pickins.” In 3 minutes and 28 seconds, Carpenter wrestles with yearning and miscommunication without dwelling for too long, the sad vibes never overstaying their welcome and she zips through memories and moments that define a relationship.

Like the song’s lyric, “We were going right then you took a left,” the masterful production does the same, switching up tempos and styles just when you get comfortable in Carpenter’s nostalgia, recalling moments of unspoken truths, guilt trips, faced down cell phones and more, all of the things we hold on to when looking back on haunted memories with old loves, especially after trust is broken. “You’re confused and I’m upset, but we never talk about it.”

Miscommunication is gold for songwriters, as some of my favorite tracks are about just that. There is a clear tie to Taylor Swift here, yes, (echoes of another Antonoff-assisted song, “Death By A Thousand Cuts” of Lover ring through this track), but there is a healthy distance to both the lyric and subject that sets Carpenter’s style apart. It’s Swift, part Stevie Nicks, some Joni and Kacey Musgraves wrapped in a pretty bow. Through the specificity, we find a way in. Never ruminating, simply stating. Deceptively cheery, this song, like the rest of the record, goes down easy. It’s brilliant, cutting, and yes, my song of the fall.

More Fall Music

Doechii: If you haven’t tapped into the new Doechii mixtape yet, this is your official homework assignment. She’s been out here for a minute, but has made something so special with “Alligator Bites Never Heal.” Start your day with “Denial is a River” and watch what happens.

Diet Pepsi: When you think about it, we’re all losing all our innocence in the backseat. What can I say? The song’s a smash.

Katie Gavin: The MUNA lead singer dropped her debut solo song mid-summer, and simply put, it wrecked me. Like most MUNA tracks, Gavin somehow wrote with freakish precision about what I’m going through at this exact time on “Aftertaste” (it’s almost creepy). A stirring guitar-led track, this is Michelle Branch meets MUNA, the perfect power ballad to strut to on a perfect fall day or cry into your coffee. Choose wisely!

Gracie Abrams: This was an earlier summer drop, but almost felt a bit too early sonically. This summer I wanted to dance (and dance I did). Now that we’re all good boys and girls again, this is perfect listening. “I Love You, I’m Sorry” is an immediate hit.

Yes, I still listen to Eternal Sunshine at least twice a week. Yes you can read all about that here.

There’s so much more I’m absorbing musically, so yes, I’m back with an official fall playlist. See below!

fall! (Apple Music)

fall! (Spotify)

Pop of Jared

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