A Whirlwind of Transformation: Demi Lovato's Dancing With the Devil... The Art of Starting Over

By: Sydney Newcomb

Demi Lovato’s seventh studio album comes to streaming platforms almost four years after her 2017 album, Tell Me You Love Me. Although three and a half years isn’t an unusually long time to take between albums, a lot happened for Lovato during that time: a near-fatal overdose, an engagement, a break-up, and an announcement of her pansexuality. 

Separated into two parts, this 19 song album covers all of the mentioned topics in a lengthy manner. The first section, prelude, includes three slow ballads that focus exclusively on her overdose. If you watched the 2020 Grammy’s, you might remember Lovato belting “Anyone”, one of the first three ballads, as her return to the music scene after an 18- month hiatus. 

All of the prelude tracks are excellent, as the beautiful lyrics match like puzzle pieces with Lovato’s powerhouse vocals. After a 26-second voice memo from Lovato, we think we are about to transition from ballads to a pop sound, as this would symbolize “The Art of Starting Over.” 

“The Art of Starting Over” and “Lonely People” are the introduction to the second part of the album. The first of the two tracks has a cool R&B-ish sound to it, and the latter is an upbeat and fun pop song with lyrics that you feel obligated to scream with your single friends. 

The subsequent songs do not have the same theme as the previous two, which makes “The Way You Don’t Look At Me” stick out like a sore thumb. Although it is a beautiful song, the lyrics tell a story of heartbreak which is a jarring and out-of-place change from the previous two songs that are about being okay on your own. 

Most of the tracks on this album are solid. Her collaboration with Ariana Grande on “Met Him Last Night” is a solid pop song that sounds like it could be on Grande’s album Dangerous Woman. “15 Minutes” is a sassy and upbeat dig at her ex-fiance that claims that he only used her for fame. 

 “The Kind of Lover I Am” is an upbeat proclamation of Lovato’s sexuality with lyrics that could make a comprehensive Tinder bio. “Doesn’t matter if you’re a woman or a man / that’s the kind of lover I am / You can safely put your heart in my hands.” With a fun, spoken outro from Lovato, this song allows the listener to have fun, which is a huge part of starting over. 

Lovato rounds out the album with tracks “California Sober,” “Butterfly” and “Good Place.” These three tracks do not have the same upbeat pop vibe as the previous songs, but this transition is not jarring as these songs are purposefully placed to close out the album.  These three slower tracks close off the album with a happy ending, with  “Good Place” saying, “Now I’m in a good place/ Took a while to feel this way.” It is saying that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and Lovato hopes that other people can find their happy ending too. 

The main issue with the album is that most of the songs do not fit the theme. Songs like “Carefully” and “Easy'' don't fit the “starting over'' theme, but wouldn’t fit the piano ballad theme either. Despite Noah Cryus’ feature on “Easy,” both of these songs are overshadowed by the upbeat tracks they are sandwiched between. 

Despite sometimes feeling like you accidentally hit shuffle while listening, Dancing with the Devil...The Art of Starting Over is an album with impressive tracks. It definitely feels like a new chapter is about to begin for Demi Lovato.