Adele’s ‘30’ Is Everything You Want from the Reigning Queen of Hearts—and Much More

When the news broke in 2019 that Adele was separating from charity executive Simon Konecki, her partner of eight years and father of their young son, Angelo, the Twittersphere reacted with typical grace and sympathy. “Sad for #Adele but we are about to get a bomb ass ‘31’ or ‘32’ album” wrote one user at the time.

Now, like a prophesy realized, Adele’s 30 drops this Friday. But the album, which arrives nearly six years after the singer-songwriter’s last record-shattering release, 25, may disappoint anyone expecting a “You Oughta Know”-style kiss-off anthem. While there are (of course) plenty of tear-soaked verses among its 12 tracks, there’s also a surprising amount of playfulness.  

You can hear Adele having fun with genre: the twinkling album opener “Strangers By Night” sounds like “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” if David Lynch were ever to remake The Wizard of Oz. “Cry Your Heart Out,” which preaches the therapeutic value of having your life fall apart every once in a while, is a reggae-tinged standout that feels like a lost Amy Winehouse song. “I Drink Wine,” despite its jokey title, is a boozy piano ditty that gave me shades of “Bennie and the Jets.” And then there’s the aptly titled banger “Oh My God,” which, with its “stomp-clap” hook, courtesy of longtime collaborator Greg Kurstin, is made to play for sold-out arenas. 

All these songs, especially “Strangers By Night,” feel like a departure from the album’s lead single, the instant-classic “Easy On Me.” It may be the quintessential Adele track, but happily, it’s nowhere near 30’s highlight.