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It’s easy to root for Kesha, which makes listening to (Period.) — her first album as an independent artist, hence its July 4 release date — such a blast. Bookended by pensive moments, (Period.) is a frisky pop record that delights in throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks — while also getting a kick out of any mess that might result from a less-than-successful toss.
(Period.) picks up sort of where 2023’s Gag Order — her final release on her former label, Kemosabe — left off: The music is shapeless, the wailing wordless. Eventually, the blur begins to clear. “Freedom,” Kesha bellows, her voice opening wide on the vowels as the instrumentation narrows around her. Finally — after a pitchman-sounding voice trills, “Narcissism! It makes you happy!” — a beat drops in, and “Freedom” goes from amorphous to pointed, whirling through post-punk dance-floor raging and gospel-choir riffing while Kesha coolly yet saucily purrs carefree raps like “Crazy girls are better in bed/Well, I can do one better instead.”
Kesha’s taste for pop experimentation is in full flower on (Period.), her indie debut well-timed to the long-brewing mainstream break of the hedonistic, neon-hued, kitchen-sink genre known as hyperpop. “Joyride,” the album’s thumping first single, blends norteña accordion blasts, huge backing vocals, and mouth-stretching enunciation; on “Yippie-Ki-Yay,” Kesha takes over the DJ booth at a honky-tonk, lending her mighty voice to lyrics about “double-cupping straight gasoline” and adding foundation-rattling beats.
Things mellow out a bit as (Period.) draws to a close. “Glow” is serenely self-satisfied, Kesha’s glitched-out voice darting through eight-bit synths. The album ends with “Cathedral,” a clear-eyed look at survival that’s also a reminder of Kesha’s gravity-defying vocal prowess. “Every second is a new beginning/I died in the hell so I could start living again,” she shouts amid droning strings and resolute piano, then declares: “I’m the cathedral.” (Period.) shows that Kesha is ready to take in all who have believed in her.
