This impressive record made me feel anything was possible and its relatable lyrics made it even better…
My ten-year-old self is currently bursting at the seams with inner joy as I cautiously reflect on Miranda Cosgrove’s Sparks Fly album – now ten years old too.
Whenever I think of Miranda Cosgrove, the first thing that comes into my head is iCarly, and I think I can speak on behalf of everyone else as well.
After achieving success on the show’s eponymous album in 2008, seemingly enough, two years later her debut album would drop too. Musically, it is a primarily a pop record. However, it strongly incorporates other genres of music such as punk and rock, with contributions (and comparisons) to the album from Avril Lavigne, whom I also immensely adore.
Track by track, the album deals around the themes of love, heartbreak, friendship, loneliness amongst other themes, and does it so well.
To start off with, the first track on the album Kissin U was also the first, and interestingly enough, only single off of the album. I remember this being played and often referenced on the television special 7 Secrets with Miranda Cosgrove in which she discussed her upcoming plans at the time. I recall having friends who had this as their guilty pleasure too and till date, I find it to be a highly reminiscent experience.
There is a reason why BAM is in capitals on the track-list for the album. The onomatopoeic song hits with you with the feeling of what it is like to fall in love and as well as the sudden feelings of fear and confusion that may come attached with it.
Shakespeare audaciously references the playwright as a question to her current crush, asking whether they like him or not alongside other romantic gestures and objects:
“Do you like Shakespeare? Jeff Buckley?
Watching movies on Sunday?
Do you like kissing when it’s raining?
Making faces in the station?”
I can gladly confirm I love all these things as well as all the lyrics.
Furthermore, the song was also featured on iCarly specifically in episode of the fourth season of the show, which features her character Carly Shay having to go to Wisconsin to sing the song in a last-minute decision. In the episode, called iDo, Cosgrove sang on the show for the first time when an iCarly fan proposed to his girlfriend live on the eponymous web show and the excited couple asks Carly (Cosgrove), Sam (Jennette McCurdy), and Freddie (Nathan Kress) to be in the wedding party.
When the bride-to-be has second thoughts about the wedding and confesses her love to Spencer, Carly’s older brother, Spencer sings one of Cosgrove’s album tracks, Shakespeare, to remind the couple that they are meant to be together.
This song clearly has too big an impact and influence on me.
Despite singing the show’s theme song, this was a chance for fans like myself to see what she really had to offer and show off.
Upbeat guitars and drum machines on the girl-power anthem There Will Be Tears offers a unique sincerity and a much-needed dash of spunk to the album.
I love that every song on the album has a different meaning but still has a similar overall sound. The most recent album I can compare in terms of similar theme is 2015’s Eyes Wide Open by Sabrina Carpenter.
Looking back on this album, I think it is incredible how much I still remember the lyrics and how happy it makes me still listening to them. Every song sounded different, but there is still coherence in how it comes across. The nostalgia of listening to Shakespeare when it is raining on a Sunday serves as a fond memory of my childhood that will never leave my mind.
Score: 7.5/10
By Zach Omitowoju
Featured Image Credit: