Album- Guilty
Pleasure
Artist- Ashley
Tisdale
The Disney Channel has been one of the big producers of
really successful franchises, and perhaps the greatest franchise from the
channel was the High School Musical series. Catapulting stars like Zac Efron
and Vanessa Hudgens to worldwide fame, the franchise also saw the rise of
Ashley Tisdale, as she played against type and went into the mean girl role.
Like most Disney Channel stars, the actress also transitioned into her own
successful music career. And with news that she is preparing for her long
awaited third studio album release, I look back at her last studio album to see
whether she was a good Disney star that deserves people’s attention, or whether
she just was riding the wave of success that was High School Musical.
Track 1- Acting Out
Opening track Acting Out works well in presenting the change
of sound from her first record: her debut had a pop and RnB orientated sound,
but this record presents more of a pop rock sound. Beginning in a way that sounds
like an orchestra beginning to play, the track quickly develops into this dark
pop rock tune that is based in a heavy guitar bass line and typical drumbeats.
Lyrically the track finds the singer putting on the role of this seemingly good
girl who is now really putting on a show and just letting herself go. The track
has a both a teen pop and mature sensibility lyrically, and the chorus is
fuelled by this forceful energy that is a little wild. However the problem with
this track is that the singers vocal performance is simply light and too pop
orientated for us to believe that she is indeed acting out, and so whilst it is
a cool and different direction for the albums beginning from her previous
record, it lacks true passion and commitment.
3/5
Track 2- It’s
Alright, It’s Ok
Guilty Pleasures lead single, It’s Alright, It’s Ok falls
more neatly into well-structured pop rock territory, and the singer gives us a
tune that has a bit more of a bite to it. Lyrically the track is an empowering
theme about moving on from a former partner who has hurt you, with the chorus
having this definitive statement quality that is very powerful. The singer’s
vocal performance is a little lifeless in places with the use of Auto Tune, but
overall the track is vocally strong and shows more personality from the singer.
And production team Twin provide a great sound to the track with feisty guitar
riffs and spunky drum beats, and so this is not an original but simply a fun
pop rock tune that is quite the guilty pleasure, and also kind of works great
as a break up anthem.
3.5/5
Track 3- Masquerade
Keeping in line with the feisty pop rock state of the
previous track, the production of this song finds Tisdale once again placing
her vocals over gritty pop rock rhythms, but this time the backbeat is a bit
more toe tapping pop orientated and the guitar rhythms are more electric guitar
driven and grittier. Lyrically the song is kind of the flipside of the previous
track as this time the singer is in a flirtatious mood and tells this guy that
she will be whatever he wants her to be as she wants to go on a masquerade,
although in the end she wants to get rid of the disguises and see if there is
love there. The vibrancy of the production lends itself well to the feisty
quality of the lyrics, and the song is fun with the lyrical theme. Vocally the
song finds the singer in a more powerful state and nicely shows some range in
her voice, but the use of Auto Tune does seem to highlight some of her vocal
weakness, and so this is another fun but typical pop tune.
3.5/5
Track 4- Overrated
Things are kept within the pop rock realms with this track,
but the sound has slightly more of an organic feel and an overall lighter tone.
The song is another empowering offering from the singer as she sings about not
changing just to please someone as that is overrated, and the guy should just
accept her for her. The songs message is hindered a little by clichéd lyrics,
but the straightforward nature of the message is appealing, and this would be a
good song for younger fans of the singers work in terms of instilling a
positive message into their minds. The track finds the singer on a finer vocal
form here as the lighter tone of her voice works well with the track,
particularly in terms of the way that the song builds. The production of the
song is also cool in terms of the pop rock drums and guitar being blended with
the strings that act as the base of the track, and so this is a good song to
offer that touch of diversity to the record.
3.5/5
Track 5- Hot Mess
Whilst the latter song was a bit more empowering and
positive, this song is too stuck in a clichéd, I’m such a girl lyrical vibe,
and it feels to juxtaposing when placed after the previous track. Lyrically the
song focuses on Tisdale having a bit more of an interesting time in hanging out
with this bad boy, and although the rebellious attitude is cool, overall the
lyrical message falls flat, with the ‘oh oh oh oh’ hook just being annoying.
The singer also sounds too bland vocally as she tries too hard to fit into the
‘I’m such a good girl’ frame of mind, and with the twangy guitar and heavy,
fast paced drumbeats, the songs overall sound is just too stereotypical, and so
this song will definitely only appeal to a younger generation who haven’t quite
matured their musical tastes.
1.5/5
Track 6- How Do You
Love Someone
Written by top songwriters Billy Steinberg and Josh
Alexander, as well as singer Porcelain Black, How Do You Love Someone takes the
record into a darker, more emotionally powerful level. The tracks lyrical
content focuses on how a girl deals with her parents split, with the chorus
focusing on the idea of this split creating this questioning of love. The
singer gives us a vocal performance that is emotionally loaded, but still feels
a bit too light and pop driven to have the true power that this song should
really have. The punchy guitar riffs and heavy bass drum of the production
makes the song have this sense of emotional resonance, and so whilst it could
be more refined, the track should be commended for being less of your typical
teen orientated, stereotypical music.
3.5/5
Track 7- Tell Me Lies
Taking things back to more of an up tempo setting, this
track finds the pop rock sound blended with a little bit of an electronic feel.
The song finds the singer in the role of this girl who knows things aren’t
right in the relationship, but she doesn’t want it to end, and so would rather
just be told lies than be told from this guy that he is leaving. The track
lyrically comes across a little bit like Tisdale is just a whiny girl, but the
vocal performance has this steady velocity that does give the song this cool
pleading tone. The electric guitar adds a bit more vibrancy to the track, and
the heavy groove of the song is a refreshing pace changer from the previous
track, and so this song is good but would just work better if it didn’t feel
like one big cliché.
3/5
Track 8- What If
Described by the singer as the most personal track on the
album, What If was co-written by well-known songwriter Kara DioGuardi and
Tisdale herself. Bringing the record to a down tempo setting, the track is a
piano led ballad that lyrically focuses asking the question of would the other
person in the relationship be there for you when you really need them. The
songs simple questioning is nicely delicate and poignant, and although she
doesn’t have the true vocal power that would really make this a statement
musical piece, Tisdales vocals are on point and give the song this essence of
vulnerability, with the way the song builds playing to the strengths of her
vocals. The problem for me with this track is that the piano, strings and drums
of the production blend together for a pop rock sound that is nice but is too
typical ballad territory, and so this is a vulnerable and nice song to just sit
and listen to, but it also feels like it could have been so much more.
3.5/5
Track 9- Erase and
Rewind
We are transferred back once again to an up tempo state with
this track where the singer is in a bit of a state of regret. This is because
lyrically the song focuses on her wishing to go back and take back what she has
said and done, as she has been a bit crazy and also just kind of regrets the
whole relationship. The fast paced quality of the lyrics make the song have the
right level of energy, with the use of repetition making it more believable
that she wants to truly rewind time and change things. The song also doesn’t
stretch the singer to much vocally and keeps things light with a slight
vulnerable edge. Production wise the song features this clattering electric
guitar bass line with some techno rhythms and upbeat drums, and so this is a
vibrant and head bobbing, fun track that makes the record feel more engaging.
3.5/5
Track 10- Hair
Hair is one of the more pop orientated tracks on this record
and feels a little bit more tied to her previous work, but also still has that
slight pop rock edge that means it fits on this record. The songs lyrical
message has sweetness to it as the singer sings of how she loves the way her
man plays with her hair and just makes her feel sexy and calm. The lyrics have
a fun silliness about them that will appeal to the Disney Channel audience,
whilst the singer gives us a smooth vocal performance that gives a touch of
maturity to the music through the way she conveys this sensuality. The songs
production is snappy with a cool use of acoustic and electric guitar for this
bouncy sound that makes this nice song to sort of make you feel confident, and
it is also a potentially good bedroom singing song.
3.5/5
Track 11- Delete You
Delete You has a lyrical message that is perfectly summed up
within the two word title, as Tisdale simply brushes off an ex and gets mad as
she has had enough of his cheating ways. The lyrics employs some clichéd
imagery but have this sassy sensibility and almost mischievous wickedness that
will appeal to the singers female fan base. The singer gives us a feisty vocal
performance, and although the track employs Auto Tune, in terms of the technological
delete you metaphor, the Auto Tune nicely works with this track. With the
electric guitar and punchy electro pop beats of the production the feistiness
of the lyrics and vocals are perfectly matched with the songs overall sound,
and so this is just a simple and fun pop number, although it is a little weird
that renowned hit maker Diane Warren wrote it, as it feels slightly too teen
pop cliché compared to some of her other work.
3.5/5
Track 12- Me Without
You
Aside from the bonus tracks, Tisdale finishes things on a
stereotypical level with this pop ballad that feature emotional piano and
guitar instrumentation and a fragile but loved up lyrical message. The track
finds the singer telling her man of how he helps her get through life, ultimately
conveying the sense that without him she wouldn’t exist. It doesn’t feel like
an original concept and so lacks a true emotional punch, and although the
singer light vocals give the track this sense of fragility, she isn’t the
strongest singer in the world, and so the track goes into sub-standard pop
ballad territory. The mixture of piano, guitar, strings and drums creates this
building sound that is typical of a pop ballad, and therefore this track will
likely just appeal to immediate, pre-teen fans of the singer who don’t quite
have a refined musical palette.
2.5/5
Track 13- Crank It Up
(bonus track)
Bonus track number 1 feels a bit weird in terms of being a
bonus track, as it was actually released as the records second and final single
in certain territories. However, in terms of the sound of the track it makes
sense why this is classed as a bonus track, as the pop rock sound that has
dominated the record is here replaced by a simple dance and electro pop sound
that feels very Britney Spears esque. The songs is all about the singer feeling
controlled by the music and this guy, and she just wants to party and have the
music cranked up. The message is simple but a bit bland in terms of the clichéd
message of increasing the music volume to really party. The singer also vocally
lacks charisma because of the use of Auto Tune, and so although the vibrant and
foreful dance beats are cool and the song does have a slight infectious
attitude about it, Crank It Up ultimately feels like a rejected Britney Spears track
that Tisdale decided to record to flesh out her record, and the fact that it
was released as a single with a music video feels weird.
3/5
Track 14- Switch
(bonus track) (from the motion picture Aliens in the Attic)
The final bonus track continues the electro pop vibe from
the previous track, but also firmly brings the pop rock essence of the record
back to the fore. Lyrically the track expresses this idea of the singer falling
in love, but the guy kind of keeps changing, and so she just needs him to switch
back so she can fully understand him and so they can be fully together. The
lyrics have more of a sophisticated quality about them than some of the albums
other offerings, and the singers light and airy vocal tone works with delicate
but sort of happy message of the track. The commanding drums and electric
guitar meld together well with the electro beats, and so this song is just a
cool and fun way to end the record, and in my eyes should have been released as
a single to promote the album and the Aliens in the Attic film that Tisdale
starred in.
3.5/5
Final Review
Guilty Pleasure is definitely an album that lives up to its
title, with pop rock tunes that are clichéd and don’t have that level of pizazz
that would make this a standout record, but which is just fun and
inoffensive. The singer gives her all
vocally even if she is perhaps a little weak, and the songs are ultimately
backed by catchy hooks. The album is also good in the way that it expresses
this idea of how the singer can be a great artist in terms of musical
reinvention, and so this is good album for the teen pop audience.
6/10
Best Track- Switch
(bonus track) (from the motion picture
Aliens in the Attic)
Worst Track- Hot Mess
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