ALBUM REVIEW: Maisie Peters’ Magical ‘The Good Witch’

Packing powerful punches full of heartbreak, self-discovery, and love, English singer-songwriter Maisie Peters delivered more than anyone imagined on her sophomore album The Good Witch, released June 23, 2023, under Gingerbread Man Records. The twenty-three-year-old musician elevated her profile with her 2021 debut You Signed Up For This, captivating audiences worldwide with her wispy voice and relatable lyrics. Over the last two years, she has released a series of singles, amassed almost four million monthly listeners on Spotify, and opened for Ed Sheeran. In The Good Witch though, Peters is reflecting on her action-packed year of relationships and self-love through fifteen pop anthems lying within.

The Good Witch opens with “The Good Witch,” the album-titled track serving as an encompassment of where Peters is at this current moment. Starting slow and gradually building into a full-scale pop production, the song isn’t only signaling Peters’ era of contemplation — both of herself and others — but hinting at the gradual musical build motif that presents itself throughout the collection. The following song, “Coming Of Age,” showcases Peters’ impactful lyricism as she sings about taking control of her own life. “I know I made you the big star/I let you butcher my big heart/But it’s my song and my stage/And it’s my coming of age.”

The fourth track “Body Better” is Peters at her most vulnerable: opening up to her global stage she delves into feelings of insecurity and doubt as she compares herself to her ex’s new girlfriend. Despite the electric guitars and heavy build, the song is delicate, largely due to its simple, yet hard-hitting chorus, “Then I, I can’t help thinking/That she’s got a better body/Has she got a body better than mine?” Immediately after is “Want You Back,” an equally melancholic piece about wanting something you lost back. Ed Sheeran, alongside electric guitar and piano melodies, backs up Peters vocally, adding depth to the already profound song.

“The Band and I,” the sixth song on the album, steps away from romantic relationships and delves into the all-too-important topic of friendship. As Peters chronicles her time touring in North America, she not only paints a picture of the American landscape but highlights the strong friendship between her and her band. 

Incorporating familiar metaphors over soft guitar strums “Wendy,” coming in as the ninth song on The Good Witch, tells the story of Peter Pan from a different perspective. As Peters sings, “Behind every lost boy, there’s always a Wendy,” she emphasizes how people feel the need to stay on one path instead of following another, better one. Despite its slower pace, the song’s intense build strikes a nerve at Peters’ core message: do not compromise for anyone.

“Run,” the tenth track, is the most musically diverse on the album. Utilizing high-energy staccatos and electro notes, the song is simply nothing more than a reminder that if a boy seems like he’s bad news the best thing to do is run as fast as you can. “There It Goes,” the penultimate track, contrasts the album’s opening number: instead of losing herself in the present, Peters is learning to embrace every joyous moment. “I felt so far from the cliffs/I sleep through the night/And I go where I’m wanted.”

The Good Witch closes with “History of Man,” a hauntingly beautiful song that captures religious and historical references to articulate who we are as a society. As far as we know, there was no spell casting, potion brewing, or shape-shifting required to create this long-awaited sophomore collection, but that doesn’t make the album any less magical, or any further from Masie Peters’ stunning means of lyricism and musicality.