Hayley Kiyoko’s New EP Follows Expectations With Few Surprises

By Keira Barry

Hayley Kiyoko’s newest EP, I’m Too Sensitive For This Shit, released on January 14 and doesn’t have much to offer in the way of new content. Nor does it have much to offer in the way of a new sound from her. With only two new tracks, the EP begins as a departure from Expectations; however, the last three songs sound as if they could still be a part of Kiyoko’s 2018 studio album. But what experimentation we do hear in I’m Too Sensitive For This Shit might be a hint as to where Kiyoko wants to go with her music next. 

The first track, “demons,” is the most obviously different track. It’s somewhat jarring and uncomfortable to listen to-- but battling inner demons is rarely as poetic as some songs make it sound. Kiyoko’s lyrics are straightforward, honest, and sound like anxiety-driven thoughts anyone could have. Interestingly, Genius tags it as Halloween music; that’s definitely a genre Kiyoko hasn’t done before, but perhaps not an entirely inaccurate description of the track. Fitting with the title of the EP, I think the song is supposed to be about the feeling of trying to overcome your own personal demons without hurting others in the process, rather than actual demonic possession. Still, the lyrics can read either way.

By the second track, Kiyoko has already started to return to the familiar. Many of her (arguably) best tracks deal with mixed signals, and both “L.O.V.E. Me” and “I Wish” return to this well-loved topic. “L.O.V.E. Me” still includes some of the themes that set “demons” apart, but “I Wish” truly sounds as if it could’ve blended right in with Expectations.

“Runaway” sounds unique mostly because it falls between two songs about the same topic. And while it has the same dream-pop vibes as Expectations, it’s a song primarily about being quick to shy away from love, and thus wouldn’t have fit within the storyline of the previous album. 

The best track off the album is easily “she.” It’s classic Hayley Kiyoko-- the dream pop sound, references to California culture, and lyrics that tackle love from an LGBT point of view. However, it’s also unique to Kiyoko as an individual. It’s a song about the struggles and challenges she’s faced, how she sees herself, and how she wants to be seen. If you wanted to understand Kiyoko as an artist, this would be the song to listen to.

So in a way, I’m Too Sensitive For This Shit feels kind of like “the songs that didn’t quite make it into Expectations.” It’s likely the EP will still appeal to fans of Kiyoko-- after all, it’s mostly just more of what they know and love her for. I’d be curious to see her experiment a little more in upcoming projects, as she did on “demons.” However, if Kiyoko is happiest and most comfortable making more dream-pop about mixed feelings in an LGBT relationship, then kudos to her for knowing her sound and sticking to it. I’m Too Sensitive For This Shit is still a solid EP, and could serve as an interesting transition into whatever project follows it.

Listen to the full album here