compared to Lavigne's previous works; with Nick Levine of NME writing that Head Above Water "isn't her most banging album, but it is a deeply honest one that sounds a lot like growing up gracefully." Many critics noted a generic sound to the album. Alexandra Pollard from The Independent wrote that the album "might not have found a musical identity that truly becomes her, but Head Above Water is an effective, and occasionally affecting, album". In an article for Exclaim!, Ian Gormely observed that "Across the record's 12 tracks, Lavigne tries on a variety of styles, inhabiting each with ease, but rarely manages to rise above and make the sound her own". Marianna Lozowska called the album "boring", being "[Lavigne's] own worst nightmare" while writing for Now. Dylan Tuck gave the album 2/5 stars in an article for The Skinny, acknowledging the powerful ballads such as the lead single, but negatively spoke about the majority of the album, noting that "it [felt] much like a lost Lavigne seeking a sound that’ll just keep her afloat". Accolades Commercial performance Head Above Water debuted at number five on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart. In the United States the album debuted at number thirteen on the US Billboard 200 chart, with 29,000 units on its first week. It also became the lowest entry on the chart, comparing to the previous one, Avril Lavigne (2013) that sold 44,000 copies. On the Billboard Independent Albums, the album peaked at number one. In the United Kingdom the album debuted and peaked at number 10 with 5,766 units sold. It also went straight to number one on the UK Independent Albums. In Germany, the album debuted at number three, making it her best performance on the chart since The Best Damn Thing (2007). Overall, the album reached top 10 positions in 10 countries. In Japan, the album had sold 42,424 copies by the end 2019. Track listing Notes signifies an additional producer signifies a vocal producer "Dumb Blonde" does not feature Nicki Minaj on physical releases, and runs 3:09 instead of 3:34. Personnel Vocals Avril Lavigne – vocals Nicki Minaj – vocals Travis Clark – vocals Stephan Moccio – background vocals Kylen Deporter – background vocals Johan Carlsson – background vocals Maiya Sykes – background vocals Mika Lett – background vocals Instrumentation Stephan Moccio – piano, keyboards Jay Paul Bicknell – drum programming, keyboards Jonathan Martin Berry