Jazmin Bean – ‘Traumatic Livelihood’ review: an honest step forward

22 February, 2024

jazmin bean

Jazmin Bean first garnered attention as a teenager online, sharing horrorcore glam looks that shocked the beauty community. Their wide-ranging influences — from Hello Kitty and Kawaii to Aswang, a legendary creature in Filipino folklore — would eventually seep into the music they started making, which draws on futuristic pop and dark heavy metal sounds. In 2019, the now 21-year-old introduced this distinctive style on their debut EP ‘Worldwide Torture,’ a collection that was characterised by its wilful experimentation.

When NME first met the north London-born artist at Reading Festival in 2021, they promised that their debut LP would be a “very personal” album; in the time since, Bean has overcome substance abuse as well as a period in rehab towards the end of 2022. The resulting record sees them shed the bratty, blood-soaked character of their makeup artist years, and instead open up about their identity and personal relationships.

The title track details the power found in taking opportunities and being more ruthless in life. Here, Bean goes from singing about having a “tail” between their legs to screaming a powerful hook atop thrashing guitars: “You can’t stop me / And I’ll get anything I want.” They continue to detail their journey as the song progresses, while offering insight into their life as a non-binary artist: “Maybe I’ll never find out if I’m a boy or girl.”

Bean continues to lean into these huge, powerful sounds across ‘Traumatic Livelihood’, allowing the arrangements to amp up the emotional impact of each song. Their theatrical vocal delivery is on full display throughout ‘Shit Show’, while ‘Favourite Toy’ is a more upbeat moment, despite its weighty themes of manipulation and deceit. The majority of the tracks are embellished with violin runs and unexpected changes in rhythms.

Standout ‘Black Dress’ summarises everything Bean has been through in recent years, while also expressing a desire to move on from the past and rise “out of the mud.” By sharing their truth with listeners, Bean offers a new, more open-hearted side to their artistry. ‘Traumatic Livelihood’ may contain glimmers of the gritty sound they made their name on, but above all else, it feels like an honest step forward.