With her third studio album, “A Matter of Time,” Laufey has moved on from the lovesick crushes of her past. Released on August 22, 2025, the album tackles the highs and lows of first love and her ultimate first heartbreak through vulnerable lyricism and powerful ballads.
The Icelandic-Chinese singer is known for her genre-bending sound, mixing elements of brass-heavy jazz with orchestral instrumentation and a touch of modern pop.
On “A Matter of Time,” she reunites with longtime collaborator Spencer Stewart, as well as Aaron Dessner and the Iceland Symphony Orchestra to bring to life 14 tracks filled with whimsy, love and the touch of cynicism that comes with age.
In an interview with Time magazine, Laufey spoke on how personal this project has been for her, comparing the songs to flipping through the pages of her diary.
“I fell in love for the first time, so it’s an album about that, and the self-discovery that comes with it,” Laufey said in the interview. “The whole goal of the album is to illustrate the contrast between this glass-like beauty and chaos that I feel within myself so often; that I am needing to present myself in a very pristine way, but I’m fighting some sort of chaos on the inside because I’m not letting it out.”
The album opens with “Clockwork,” a song that evokes the artwork of the album cover. The song explores the experience of falling in love with a friend, and the inane struggle of resisting what the heart wants.
The themes of young love explored on the remainder of the album are opened with this song’s second chorus: “But good God, I think he fell in love / Tick, tock, and I fell in love too / Like clockwork, I fell in love with you.”
The influence of 1950s artists Frank Sinatra and Billie Holiday shine through on the sixth track, “Silver Lining.” A song about a love so achingly deep that she would go to the depths of hell before separating from her lover, no matter how unhealthy the relationship may be.
Cleverly, Laufey flips the switch on the word “propose” in her lyrics, writing “So, I propose / It’s long overdue / When you go to hell, I’ll go there with you too.” Instead of its association to eternal love and marriage, she ties it to another kind of eternity in the depths of hell, signaling the relationship is ultimately doomed.
The vulnerability of the album is showcased on the tenth track, “Tough Luck.” This track directly identifies the anger and betrayal that the singer has felt in a past relationship, one where she eventually left the partner in question.
The phrase “tough luck” is empowering for the artist, as it shows that it was his loss and not her own. She knows that deep down he will miss out on knowing her, as can be seen in the titular line: “You won’t be missed, I’m glad to see you go / Tough luck, tough luck.”
The lyrical chaos elevates in the closing song, “Sabotage.” Accompanied by an angry clashing of orchestral instruments, it evokes all the anger, resentment and ultimately, gratitude of falling in love for the first time.
The song is complex, messy and incredibly vulnerable, perfectly closing up the themes of the album. The closing lyrics pinpoint the artist’s own achilles heel of constantly sabotaging her personal relationships, no matter how good they may be: “It’s just a matter of time ‘til you see the dagger / It’s a special of mine to cause disaster / So prepare for the impact, and brace your heart / For cold, bloody, bitter sabotage.”
The album blends in and out of songs seamlessly, creating a harmonious listen that acts as an activity in itself. However, this ultimately means that the record gets repetitive. The album would have benefited from cutting certain songs that failed to add anything stylistically, such as tracks on the latter half of the album “Clean Air” and “A Cautionary Tale.”
Through the combination of dramatic orchestral instrumentations and Laufey’s poignant, emotionally candid lyrics, “A Matter of Time” delivers a deeply emotional musical experience.