Maya Hawke – Chaos Angel Review

At least use the links of nepotism to work on interesting projects. Such is the privilege but known opportunity Maya Hawke has; she has commented on this in the past. It is the direction of these creatives we can find it in our hearts to accept, to some degree, because the legacy of their parents may kindle interesting work. It works for Margaret Qualley. It worked for Jamie Lee Curtis. It is unfortunately keeping Ben Platt at work. For Hawke, the particulars of her interest in whatever field of art she sticks with are still developing. While it may affect the message almost completely, the time taken to construct Chaos Angel certainly sounds as though care is part of it. But how much can a person of already constructed fame give? How far can they dive into their experiences? Enough to warrant a listen to Chaos Angel, at the very least.  

These are the small shuffles made by an artist feeling for their openness. Pieces which should have made Moss stronger are instead reserved for here, where they do little of note. Dark is the song in question – the second track of the album and little more than a footnote when it comes to rounding up the best moments of this work. And yet it is an instrumental powerhouse, stuffed full of heavy percussion to combat the airy, often unfocused lyrical collection. Softly performed lyrical focuses and Christmas-adjacent tracks for the opening of Chaos Angel certainly give it the singer-songwriter pop angle, with a layer of seasonal style. Black Ice is a real charmer, the intermittent spread of spoken-word vocals does little but it is clear to hear what style Hawke is aiming for with the gentle instrumental flourishes found throughout. Instrumental glories are the best part of Chaos Angel, an album not afraid to make those swathing leaps. 

Chaos Angel falls into a fairly consistent, if predictable spot of musicianship. A few charms from within the album can certainly be found but it is nothing too exciting. Those are the flourishes we must hold on to as Chaos Angel feels relatively empty without them. Okay is a song which has those extra interjections holding it together, what sounds like plates smashing paired with this acceptance of a situation is a bold song which takes some time to build. Hawke is trying to build a musical style and is throwing what she can at the wall – leaving bits like Better a mess of half-thought ideas and pursuit of what is popular. Chasing those tales is heard on Big Idea too, a difficult and brisk run through soap opera dependencies.  

Hawke has made a harmless and often light album with a few bright spots. It has all the inevitable spots of emotionally open and optimistic readings, heard so often in the face of realism. There is a warmth to Chaos Angel which feels relatively honest and listeners looking for another punch of soft acoustics paired with the usual heartwarming tones of the genre would be hard-pressed to find a more consistent piece. But consistency does not create the thrills of a new push in the genre – and while Hawke has the fundamentals down to a tee, the next steps sound a way off. What few experiments there are on this fall short of where they should be.