Dear Reader: Troye Sivan?

Members of the UMD Nordic Ski Club pose for a picture on their roller skis after UMD's 2026 Homecoming Parade.
Contributed Photo

Welcome back to my column, Dear Reader, where you get to experience William’s witticisms, hear about events around town, read song reviews, and more. I know you are reading this, so please send some feedback, songs to review, and events to baue0649+dearreader@d.umn.edu.

This week, I’m reviewing the new Troye Sivan album per a request. I’ll also talk about homecoming and more.

The first song, She’s the Best, confirmed for me that this isn’t my usual listening music, so bear that in mind. The song itself was fine, but I didn’t particularly enjoy it. I’m ambivalent towards this one.

The next song, Party, was not my jam. Sorry y’all. There was no story, just repeating two lines, making noise, not music. Canada Dry had potential from the start, with an electronic beat but with more of a pop musicality than the previous songs. So, I would consider putting it on a playlist but wouldn’t listen to it for anything other than background noise. I Do This For You, has similar vibes to Party but with more variability. Cowboy has a decent melody, but I’ll comment on the whole album’s lyricism later.

I’m skipping the rest of the songs here, and noting that at my first listen, I stopped listening to the album half way through Troye Meets World. There are three songs after it, but I just don’t think that they are personally worth my time. The lyricism for the album doesn’t float my boat, as it dances with the crude and profane. I didn’t feel the need to be filling my head with that at this time. 

If you disagree, or would like to review the album yourself, please send comments to baue0649+dearreader@d.umn.edu.

In other news, Duluth’s homecoming was this weekend! I got to participate in the parade with UMD’s Nordic Skiers. I roller skied from my apartment across campus to the start, skied the parade, then moseyed back to my apartment to cook up some food. It’s always intriguing to see people's reactions to stray roller skiers, ranging from surprise to fear of being stabbed by our poles. Don’t worry, we usually have them under control. And no, I don’t have brakes on them. Just trust me to know what I’m getting myself into. 

That’s all for this week! Send me a message if you liked it or want to hear about anything specific.

Cheers!