Sam Fang
Dove Cameron really needs to give us an album. Thankfully, the long wait appears to be (almost) over.
At this point, another single feels almost cruel. We’ve spent years watching Dove carve out one of pop’s more distinctive corners — dark, theatrical, feminine and occasionally just a little unhinged — and yet we’re still waiting for that next full-length body of work.
In the meantime, we’ve got “When In Rome,” and surprisingly, Dove has decided to fall hopelessly, ridiculously, saccharinely in love. Who could’ve seen that coming?!
When Dove Cameron Gets Rome-antic
Dove’s music has traditionally had a way of putting a darker or more empowering spin on the kind of romantic material pop music has been serving us forever.
Take “Breakfast,” where infatuation becomes a deliciously vicious declaration: “I eat boys like you for breakfast.” Or “Romeo,” which takes the familiar language of romantic devotion and twists it into something considerably more sinister with the promise of giving someone “that love you’d kill yourself for.”
“When In Rome” is… considerably less threatening. “Why don’t we get married? Build a home!” Dove proclaims, seemingly overcome by the sheer possibility of domestic bliss.
The accompanying video finds her running through Rome, falling head over heels for the idea of love while notably remaining by herself. That’s actually a particularly nice touch for Dove. Rather than needing to put a romantic interest front and center, she moves through the city observing other people and their various versions of love, seemingly falling in love with the idea of it all.
It’s romantic without becoming entirely dependent on another person. Which, honestly, feels pretty on-brand.
‘When In Rome’ Is Catchy Without Trying to Game the Algorithm
The chorus is exceptionally catchy, but what’s refreshing is how naturally catchy it feels. There is no sense that Dove has reverse-engineered the song around a 15-second snippet, a dance challenge or whatever the algorithm has decided will make teenagers scream this week.
It’s simply a good pop chorus, and that’s where Dove has always been particularly compelling. Her music can be theatrical and strange, but underneath all of it there’s usually a genuine emotional core. She’s not afraid to make something earnest.
In an era where pop music increasingly seems designed around how quickly a song can become a meme, there’s something almost radical about letting a song simply be a song.
“When In Rome” isn’t going to suddenly reinvent the pop landscape, but it also doesn’t need to.
A Little Bit of the Old Dove Cameron
For most of its runtime, “When In Rome” is almost aggressively sweet. Then the bridge arrives.
“I think I love you so much, I wanna be you / Crush you into powder, so that I can breathe you.”
There she is. It’s a wonderfully bizarre little glimpse of the Dove fans have come to know — the one who can take an otherwise conventional romantic sentiment and turn it into something vaguely threatening if you give her enough time.
Even so, the track remains much more saccharine than her usual material, but that’s part of the intrigue leading up to her debut album. Dove has spent much of her music career building an identity around complicated femininity, dark pop and subverting conventional romance. Watching her simply embrace the giddy, lovestruck side of herself feels like another evolution rather than a betrayal of everything that came before.
Of course, Dove isn’t going to let us leave completely satisfied. As the video reaches its conclusion, the skies open up. Rain pours down. Lightning illuminates the scene. And then it appears: FINAL GIRL.
It’s a tiny detail, but it changes the entire tone of what came before. Suddenly, the saccharine romance feels like it might have been hiding something underneath all along.
Whether it’s a tease for where Dove’s next era is heading or simply a wink to the darker sensibilities that have always been lurking beneath her music, it’s a perfect final note. Because Dove Cameron can run through Rome dreaming about marriage and building a home all she wants.
We’re still waiting for the knife to come out. And she knows it.
