Album- Yours Truly
Artist- Ariana Grande
She may have first come into the spotlight with her role as
Cat Valentine in the hit Nickelodeon show Victorious, but 2013 has definitely
been a great year for Miss Ariana Grande, as she has finally emerged as a
stellar recording artist with a powerful voice that has seen her being cast by
many as this generations Mariah Carey. Only time will tell if this young star
has what it takes for longevity, but hopefully her pop and RnB throwback based
record Yours Truly will showcase that she does deserve Mariah Carey level
success.
Track 1-Honeymoon
Avenue
Opening track Honey Moon Avenue is a big opening number that
is one of three tracks that were reworked for the record after Grande decided
to change the albums musical direction. Opening with a stirring swirl of
strings that evoke this feeling of you listening to a cinematic music piece,
the track acts as a perfect opening number in terms of signalling the throwback
roots of the record. With the ‘do do dum’ male vocals and snappy RnB rhythms
there is no hiding the fact that this is a nostalgic sound that will perhaps
appeal to an older generation. But with the strings and backing vocals comes
snappy RnB rhythms that give a modern touch to the track, and creates appeal
for the younger generations. In its entirety the production is masterfully
blended to create a sound that is chilled but potent, and which works well in
highlighting what is undoubtedly the power of this album and of Grande as an
artist: the singer’s voice. Here we are treated to a passionate vocal performance
from Grande that nicely delves between moments of sweet softness and high
moments of pure deliciousness, but also nicely never stretching the singer’s
voice too far and giving away all her tricks in one go. Lyrically the track has
this two edged quality of being both sweet and sour, as Grande asks her lover
to go back to that time when they were so good together and so in love. The
songs only downfall is the end which just makes it feel a bit unnecessarily
dragged out, but if this doesn’t excite you for the rest of the album then that
would be surprising.
3.5/5
Track 2- Baby I
From the softness of Honeymoon Avenue we go into snappier,
more upbeat RnB territory with Baby I, the second single from Yours Truly and a
song that shows of the power of the singers voice and definitely shows how she
is a strong contender for being the modern day RnB and pop queen. The track is
lyrically dipped in this sweet essence as Grande sings of this love she feels
for this special someone, and how she stumbles over her words because words
can’t really express her strong feeling. The sweetness of the songs message is
perfectly matched by the strength and ability of Grande as a vocalist, as he
powerful range adds depth to the track, whilst the high moments and fast paced
rhythms create this deliciously soft tone to the track as well. Production wise
the song is sealed in this bed of breezy, retro beats and finger clicking
grooves that makes this a perfect RnB flavoured package and an excellent single
choice.
4/5
Track 3- Right There
(featuring Big Sean)
Continuing with the straightforward, 90’s RnB throwback,
Right There continues from where Baby I left off and finds the singer in a
euphoric state of love. Lyrically the song finds Grande telling her beau of how
he is so great that he should know she will always be right there for him. The
song vocally is once again strong, but is given a little bit more edge through
the use of vocal layering and the presence of rapper Big Sean, who gives some
cool swag to the track and nicely offers a bit of diversity, as this could have
been a bit of a Baby I inferior. The twinkling piano and the snappy RnB beats
aren’t as fresh placed after the last track, but the sound still nicely suits
Grande and Sean, and so the essence of similarity can be forgiven.
3.5/5
Track 4- Tattooed
Heart
The second track that was reworked for the record, Tattooed
Heart is a mid tempo number that has an even greater retro essence than some of
the former tracks, and which has a very old school, sway to the rhythm, girl
group feel. Here we find Grande singing about telling this boy that it doesn’t
matter what he does and how he makes her feel, just as long as she knows that
her name is on his heart. The message is sweet and will appeal to some of the
singers female fan base, but for me the lyrics are perhaps a bit too cliché
worthy and lack the catchy, hook driven power of the last songs. However, this
track is definitely a number that is saved by Grande’s vocals, as here we find
the singer really showing off her vocals and putting passion into the words
that makes her seem much more mature than her age. The tracks production also
nicely builds in intensity from simple jaunty piano rhythms and snappy RnB
beats to stirring strings and a powerful volume that brings out the euphoria of
the words and leaves a stronger impression on the listener.
3.5/5
Track 5- Lovin’ It
With a shout out to the producers at the beginning, Lovin It
brings the record back to a little bit more of a modern RnB feel whilst still
feeling nostalgic in its musical essence. And as well as changing the sound a
bit compared to the last track, Lovin It also thouroughly changes the tempo and
gives us a number that you can jump and dance around to, with heavy bass beats
and twinkling piano notes that blend together nicely for a really great sound.
The song is once again a pure love song from Grande as she tells this boy that
she has all her love no doubt, with the song be helped by the fast paced
catchiness of the chorus. Once again the vocal performance is really strong,
with Grande really showing off her vocal ability in terms of how the song is
quite fast paced but yet she doesn’t show any signs of struggle, and even
manages to create some really high moments in the latter sections of the track
to show sincerity and passion once again.
3.5/5
Track 6- Piano
Piano is a song that ups the dance factor of the record to
another level, and also acts as one of the more purer pop moments on the
record. However this pop energy does not mean that this track feels out of
place, as there is still enough diva vocal power and harmonies, as well as a
little RnB sass and melodic flavour for this to be a simply great addition of
the album. The song is lyrically a very cute affair where Grande tells us of
how she could use her new piano to sing about affairs of love, but standing
firm in her decision to make a radio song people can join together in and dance
to. Grande definitely succeeds in making this an awesome song to dance to, and
there are many ways that she does this. Firstly, the song’s lyrics are
extremely catchy, with the verses being just a memorable as the chorus and
creating this all round lyrical package that will easily get stuck in your
hand. Secondly, Grande’s voice is so soft but smooth and has this infectious
air about it that makes you feel that she means what she is singing and is just
this person of great love. Finally, the production of the song is just great,
beginning with this great piano loop before going into you have to dance
handclapping drums. This is just an act of awesome pop and a master of class.
5/5
Track 7-Daydreamin
The last of the records reworked for the album tracks,
Daydreamin’ has this snappy backbeat that adds a bit of bite to the songs
sound, and along with the heavy bass of the post chorus sections, this song is
prevented from sounding to 1950’s and feeling out of place on the record. The
blend of the more modern feeling sound with the preppy piano note and lush
strings creates a throwback sound that still feels current and which makes this
a great addition on the record rather than an erm moment. The song is another
point for Grande to tell us of how she is feeling over this boy, with the
singer capturing the girlish feeling of being so in love that you are in this dreaming
state over this boy. The song perhaps doesn’t show of the singers range in the
best way, but nicely utilises the softer, higher register of her voice to bring
purity to the songs lyrical message, and with the cute grainy radio fade out,
this is another class for the listener in how great something like love can be.
3.5/5
Track 8- The Way
(featuring Mac Miller)
Grande’s breakout hit, The Way is a light, bouncy RnB pop
number that finds the singer simply telling her beau of how she loves the way
that he makes her feel. The lyrics are simple but effective and have this
catchy quality that is complimented really well by the bouncy piano beats and
snappy rhythm of the production. The song is definitely one of the strongest
vocally in terms of the precision of the vocals and the way they are layered,
with the song working exceptionally well in terms of how different moments show
us different levels of Grande’s vocal ability and makes you really pay
attention to the singer as an artist. Mac Miller provides two nice rap moments
that feel both masculine and cute in a good way and provides a bit of a twofold
perspective to the song that further adds to the appeal of the track, and which
also doesn’t feel like an unnecessary rap.
4/5
Track 9- You’ll Never
Know
The title may be a little bit of a hint, but You’ll Never
Know is song where the singer finally takes a step away from expressing
feelings of love, and instead brushes off an ex who has expressed his feelings
too late, and now she is with someone else this guy should just accept that
he’ll never know what they could have been. The message is a nice pace changing
number for the record in terms of its sensibility, and the lyrics are nicely
created in a way that makes Grande sound firm in what she is saying, but also
creating a really catchy number at the same time that makes this an anthem for
people out there who want to tell their ex that he missed out. The song works
well in showing of the singer’s vocals, with the chorus really being fine-tuned
in terms of the effects on her voice, adding an even greater level of this is
really catchy to the song. The synthesisers and snares of the tracks production
creates a bubbly sound that make this a great RnB pop kiss off moment, and if
Grande was to release a single that showed a little of a different edge to her,
this would be a great choice.
4/5
Track 10- Almost Is
Never Enough (with Nathan Sykes)
The one true ballad of the set, Almost Is Never Enough is
definitely the purest and most vulnerable moment on the record in every way.
Here we find Grande singing about how her and her man gave up on the
relationship because they were almost in love, but everyone know that that is
not enough. The singers power and range is superbly shown within the tracks
simplicity, with the snappy beats and piano led sound acting as a beautiful
musical bed that makes the track more potent. Nathan Sykes (more widely known as
one fifth of the boy band The Wanted) isn’t the strongest vocalist to pair with
Grande, but the soft delicacy to his voice makes the song touching and acts as
a complimentary tone to Grande’s voice. The song is dragged out a little and
works better in a shorter form that exists on the soundtrack to the film Mortal
Instruments: City of Bones, but other than that this is a quite beautiful
musical affair.
3.5/5
Track 11- Popular
Song (with Mika)
Popular Song is definitely the biggest pop moment on the record,
and although it is a good pop song, it feels a bit too out of place on this
record. The track itself is actually a reworked version of a song that Mika
re-corded with singer Priscilla Renea, and which was actually a single for
Mika. The track is based on the original song featured in the musical Wicked,
and finds Grande and Mika nicely blending together vocally to sing of how
people use to bring them down cause they weren’t popular, but now there song is
popular, and they’ve realised you just really have to be true to you. The
lyrical message borders on clichés, but the peppiness and upbeat texture of the
tracks production makes you forget that and just indulge yourself a little. A
good track in itself, but ultimately feels like a waste on this record.
3.5/5
Track 12- Better Left
Unsaid
As we come to the near end of the record, Grande provides a
little bit of surprise with Better Left Unsaid. This is because whilst the
track still keeps in line with the throwback essence of the track in terms of
the RnB piano rhythms and stirring strings, the song also utilises EDM within
the track to give us the collections purest dance number and a powerful song
for the albums ending that shows that Grande is an accomplished artist who can
delve into different genres, but who remains true to herself. The song is both
a sweet and powerful number that is lyrically about how Grande could tell this
guy many things but in the end some things are better left unsaid, because
actions just say a lot. The message is really great and catchy, and is elevated
by the power of the singers voice that breathes passion into the words and
makes this a stellar number that would work well as a crossover single for pop
and dance markets.
4/5
Track 13- The Way
(Spanglish Version)(featuring Mac Miller)
The final track is simply a reworked version of the Way that
is the same as the original, but features moments of Grande singing in Spanish.
It is a nice version which caters to the Latin market, but ultimately the song
is simply the same and so this would have perhaps just been better marketed as
a bonus track or used on a deluxe version.
3.5/5
Final Review
Ariana Grande has created an album that is impeccably
beautiful and stellar in sound, with the singer definitely cementing her status
as one of the leading voices of her generation and an undeniable star. Each
track on this record is created in a great way, with the singer’s voice being
so powerful that it captivates the audience, whilst the lyrics are really
catchy and the sound of each track really fine tuned to make the singer shine.
There are so many potential hit songs on this record that it is unbelievable,
and each track is great and means that there is definitely no filler. This
looks to be the best pop album of 2013, and potentially the best album of 2013.
9.5/10
Best Track- Piano
Worst Track- Tattooed
Heart
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