ARIANA GRANDE: Petal (Babydoll)Verdict: Bruised but unbowedRating: Three out of five stars When Ariana Grande announced last weekend that she was pulling out of next year's London stage production of the Stephen Sondheim musical Sunday In The Park With George, it was easy to understand her reasoning.The American superstar has grown up in public since releasing her first album, Yours Truly, as a 20-year-old wannabe in 2013. Exhausted by the 'endless, ongoing' scrutiny, and concern over her slender physique, she now plans to take a break after her world tour finishes in London next month – and her disenchantment spills over into her latest album, Petal.'You know I don't believe I belong, give me something to love,' she sings on Kiss Me, her effortless, featherlight voice backed by female harmonies and clattering electronic beats. Defiant Ariana Grande has insisted: 'This music and I will never die' with new album Petal, says Adrian Thrills in his review of the singer's eight studio album It's not clear whether she's singing about a wayward lover or her bittersweet relationship with fame, but there's a sense of purpose that was absenton her previous album, 2024's Eternal Sunshine.She goes on to address overzealous fans and the pressures faced by women in the spotlight on Hate That I Made You Love Me, a breathless R&B ballad. 'Something inside is dancing with fire,' she admits. 'I hate that I made you love me, 'cause I barely tried.' Despite the bruises, she isn't asking for our sympathy. 'This is not a cry for help,' she asserts on the title track.Florida-born Grande, 33, has described this as her 'experimental' album – one coming from a place of 'unfiltered rage'. That's true, as much as Swedish super-producers Ilya Salmanzadeh and Max Martin have supplied her with a few heavy basslines and some distorted electronics. But the sweetness of her vocal delivery ensures there's still plenty here for fans of more traditional pop.There's a giddy love song in Stay, gentle innuendo on Big Feelings, and a blunt message to her exes on Oh Well. 'The bad guys all go to hell, good things can replace dysfunction,' she sings.The unfiltered rage never really bursts forth, though; with Grande seemingly unwilling to fully deploy her powerful, four-octave range. Exhausted by the 'endless, ongoing' scrutiny, and concern over her slender physique, she now plans to take a break – and her disenchantment spills over into her latest album, PetalFor such a fabulous singer, she often – frustratingly – holds back.The album still finishes strongly. Steeped in the swing and swagger of 1990s R&B, Never Get Over Me is the best song here, and Bad Thing (Bunny Hop) is a catchy synth-pop anthem in which Ariana suggests a long-forgotten ex-boyfriend was the one who got away. 'It's silly, but I wonder if you feel how I feel,' she muses.Petal isn't an album to rank alongside her 2018 masterpiece, Sweetener, but it's a marked upgrade on Eternal Sunshine, which was so underwhelming she released three additional versions, adding fresh material each time. And, as she tells us on the title track, she can still look on the bright side. 'I don't need someone to save me, 'cause this music and I will never die.'Ariana Grande starts a residency at The O2, London, on August 15 (axs.com).