It feels like Lex the Lexicon Artist hit the ground running in 2018, when she dropped her debut album, Raging Ego. Since that time, she’s been touring constantly, guested on other artists’ projects, and released some shorter themed projects such as Special: A Mob Psycho 100 EP. With no signs of slowing down, she now comes back with her sophomore album, Alter Ego.

When Lex dropped Raging Ego, there were some small typical problems of a debut album, especially when your style doesn’t fit neatly in a box. That’s because Lex was being extremely ambitious with her debut album, and while there was a lot to get excited about, bringing it all together into a coherent style across a full length album is a difficult task for anyone. So when it came time for a sophomore album, the big question looming over it was how big of a step forward was Lex going to make? The answer is that while Lex does take a giant step forward, she’s not quite all the way there, but that’s okay. It’s still just a sophomore album, and there is still a ton to like about what Lex has accomplished here. The first six tracks of the album are especially strong and well connected, as Lex lays out some smooth laid back tracks that allow her to claim some space and talk some shit, get personal about mental health and her career. When we get to “Party Hop,” it’s a bit of a jarring transition, but it does switch things up with a pop/disco feel and shows a fun side of Lex that we hadn’t seen on this album yet. The title track is a fun nerdcore song that has nice depth to it as Lex discusses the blurred line between her stage persona and who she is in her personal life. My personal favorite on the second half of the album is the trap track of “Posturing,” produced by Liz Grove. While track doesn’t do anything outside the general form of the subgenre, what makes the track special is both the way that Lex lets loose on the mic and the ways in which she finds room in a song about “posturing” and railing against people being fake to also include discussion about imposter syndrome. Rivaling that on the other side of things is “The Real Thing,” produced by NSF, which is a really soulful downtempo track that allows Lex a lot of space to open up about a past relationship and how it helped shape her into the adult she is now.

Lex the Lexicon Artist took a big step forward with Alter Ego. It’s incredibly intelligent, and full of emotional moments that will resonate with listeners, all while Lex lives up to her name and brings all sorts of the different flows to the project. She also takes some commendable risks across the album – not all of them work, or at least that don’t always feel like they work side by side. That said, I’d rather see an artist try different things and not box themselves in than play it safe. I’m sure she’ll continue to grow and improve, much like she’s already done, and before we know it, she’ll level up once again.