''Whatever'' is the third

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by American drag performer and recording artist

Adore Delano Daniel Anthony Noriega, (born September 29, 1989) better known under the stage name Adore Delano, is an American drag queen, singer-songwriter, and television personality. Noriega appeared as a contestant on the seventh season of ''American Ido ...

, released on August 18, 2017.

Background and recording

''Whatever'' is

's third

, following ''

Till Death Do Us Party ''Till Death Do Us Party'' is the debut studio album from American singer-songwriter and drag queen, Adore Delano. The album was released through Sidecar Records in association with Producer Entertainment Group on June 3, 2014. The album was avail ...

'' (2014) and '' After Party''. ''Whatever'' marked a genre shift from pop to

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

. She has said of her decision to pivot: On recording the album, she has recalled:

Composition

The

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of p ...

, and punk rock album is approximately 42 minutes, 48 second in length. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' Brandon Voss described the album as "guitar-fueled". Musically, Adore Delano was inspired by the

music of Seattle Seattle is the largest city in the U.S. state of Washington and has long played a major role in the state's musical culture, popularizing genres of alternative rock such as grunge and being the origin of major bands like Alice in Chains, Soundga ...

and the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...

, including

Kurt Cobain Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – April 5, 1994) was an American musician who served as the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter of the rock band Nirvana. Through his angst-fueled songwriting and anti-establishment persona ...

Courtney Love Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, her career has spanned four decades. She rose to prominence as t ...

, and Babes in Toyland. The song "27 Club" refers to the numerical cultural phenomenon of the same name, a list of famous people who died at the age of 27. Adore Delano penned the song "out of a genuine place of fear -- she had been experimenting with drugs and knew that her habits could make her the club's newest member". According to Sam Chapman of ''

Alternative Press Alternative press may refer to: Individual publications * ''Alternative Press'' (magazine), an American music magazine Alternative journalism * Alternative media ** Alternative media (U.S. political left) ** Alternative media (U.S. political ri ...

'', the song's lyrics "hint at the mental turbulence that drove much of the record and Delano's relocation to Seattle in the first place".

Release and promotion

"Negative Nancy" served as the album's

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

and received a

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

. Adam Salandra of ''NewNowNext'' wrote, "The video finds Adore playing with gender while playing on a softball team, and celebrates the power of not conforming to society’s rules." ''Billboard'' debuted the music video for "Whole 9 Yards" on August 21, 2017. The music video for "27 Club" was directed by Ben & Katelyn Simkins and filmed in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. Released in July 2018, '' Out'' described the video as "steamy". Stephen Daw of ''

'' wrote, "The clip shows Delano writhing around a motel room, bathing in roses and praying at an altar to survive her 27th year on Earth, while channeling the grunge-rock sound of iconic groups like Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains."

Reception

Brandon Voss of ''Billboard'' said the album "shows off an edgier, angrier side to the androgynous party princess". ''Alternative Press'' Sam Chapman described ''Whatever'' as "a bona fide alt-rock album" and "an 11-track suite of growly, straightforward rock songs". He called "27 Club" one of the album's "standout" tracks, and wrote about the song's references to

27 Club The 27 Club is an informal list consisting mostly of popular musicians, artists, actors, and other celebrities who died at age 27. Although the claim of a "statistical spike" for the death of musicians at that age has been refuted by scientific ...

, "It's an unexpected but fitting fixation for a drag musician, since drag queens are, by their nature, creatures of self-invention and mythologizing." Daisy Jones of ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...

'' said the album "basically sounds like Courtney Love and

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

if they'd had a lovechild and raised it on stage in Vegas". Allison Stubblebine of ''Billboard'' ranked ''Whatever'' number nine in her list of the "Top 10 Albums by LGBTQ Artists in 2017: Critics' Picks".

Track listing

Track listing adapted from the

Apple Store The Apple Store is a chain of Retail, retail stores owned and operated by Apple Inc. The stores sell various Apple products, including Macintosh, Mac personal computers, iPhone smartphones, iPad tablet computers, Apple Watch smartwatches, Apple ...

and

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a proprietary Swedish audio streaming and media services provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It is one of the largest music streaming service providers, with over 456 million monthly active us ...

# "Adam's Apple" – 2:28 # "27 Club" – 4:16 # "Butterfly" – 3:31 # "No School" – 4:16 # "Whole 9 Yards" – 3:28 # "Pretty Boys Cry" – 3:51 # "Negative Nancy" – 3:47 # "Princess Cut" – 3:34 # "Witch Hunt" – 5:00 # "But Her Fly" – 3:33 # "Hole Nine Yards" – 4:48

References

{{Authority control 2017 albums Adore Delano albums Alternative rock albums by American artists Grunge albums Punk rock albums by American artists