Album- Britney Jean
Artist- Britney
Spears
Toted as the Princess of Pop, Britney Spears is already and
artist who will have left her mark on the music world, with her exciting career
producing such hits as ‘…Baby One More Time’ ‘I’m a Slave 4 U’, and ‘Toxic’.
Britney Jean is the singer’s eighth studio album from the singer and has been described
by the singer herself as her most personal record to date. But is Britney Jean
an album strong enough to keep the singers pop crown, or is it about time that
she was stripped of her title?
Track 1- Alien
Rumoured to be a collaboration with fellow pop phenomenon
Lady Gaga, Alien is simply an electro pop number that finds Spears singing of
this person being in her life that lets her know that she is not alone, and who
is almost like this alien, whilst she herself is also this alien in the world.
The lyrics could be better but are intriguing in that you can get differing
meanings out of them. And whilst the production of the track isn’t intriguing
or innovative, the song features some nice post chorus stuttering’s and has a
nice mid tempo sound that makes for a simpler introduction to record than if
Spears had begun things with a party track. However, the song is wrong in terms
of Auto Tune, as the singer just sounds boring and leaves no impression, making
this more a sub-par beginning.
2.5/5
Track 2- Work Bitch
The records first single, Work Bitch finds Spears dictating
to her listener about how if they want fancy things like martinis and a Lamborghini,
then they have to really work for it. The message is interesting and perhaps is
meant to act as a sign of what Spears work ethic has been over the years, but
at times the lyrics just don’t blend well together and seem to go off point,
whilst the chorus gets to the point where Spears is trying too hard to instil
her message in the listener. The vocals are stronger here but Auto Tune is
still an issue, and the vocal improvement is more because of the fact that
things are kept on a simple, I’m almost talking level with a weird British like
accent, meaning that the song straddles the line between good or just stupid. Furthermore, the production value of the track
with its heavy EDM style is nothing new and doesn’t place Spears at the top of
the music game, with the songs producers’ will.i.am and Sebastian Ingrosso very
much placing Spears in their music styles rather than allowing her to flourish
as an artist. It might be good to dance along to in a club after a few drinks,
but if anyone was to download this onto their Ipod to listen to in their
bedroom, then I would definitely have my eyebrows raised.
2.5/5
Track 3- Perfume
Released as the records second single, Perfume finds the
singer in more emotionally raw territory and sees her release her first proper
ballad in quite a while. Whilst it doesn’t reach the dizzying heights of her
other releases (in particular the ballad Everytime), Perfume does give us a
sense of a more personal Britney that hasn’t been heard for a while, and this
can be commended. The song plays on the themes of jealousy and suspicion within
a relationship, focusing on the idea of being able to smell a perfume of another
on your lover that shouldn’t be there. The song is a bit more poetic and fine-tuned
lyrically than the first two album offerings, whilst still giving listeners a
solid, catchy pop chorus. Vocally Spears is also stronger here, with her vocals
being less Auto Tuned and her little Britney mannerisms that have made her an
icon for many people coming into play more so than we have perhaps heard in a
while. The songs production is perhaps it’s only minor issue, in that although the
mix of piano and strings with synthesisers is cool, it once again isn’t anything
that hasn’t been done before, and is very much designed for pop and top 40
radio. Something extra was needed for the songs sound to be that little bit
more intriguing, or else Britney should have just stripped things back, but
finally at this point Britney Jean starts to deliver.
3.5/5
Track 4- It Should Be
Easy (featuring will.i.am)
Two DJ titans, David Guetta and Nicky Romero, provide
lyrical and production help with this track alongside the albums executive
producer will.i.am. The song is another relationship based tune that focuses on
the idea that love should be easy and questioning why relationships are so
hard. The lyrics are simply structured for a solid chorus that can quickly get
stuck in your brain, but again the song is made annoying through the use of Auto
Tune that makes it seem like this is a robot making music, not an emotional
human being. The production is intriguing, particularly with the funky guitar
line that underlies the song, and although the dance beats and breakdown is
typical of Romero and Guetta, it still powerful and fun enough to make the song
attention grabbing and make you want to dance. It is just a shame that it feels
like will.i.am was like Britney please just record this song because I want to
feature on your album and make you suck in ways that you shouldn’t be.
3/5
Track 5- Tik Tik Boom
(featuring T.I.)
With a title like Tik Tik Boom, this song is very much
positioned as a party tune, and so the fact that Spears delivers isn’t surprising.
However the song isn’t really up tempo but is more of a synth heavy dance assault
on the ears that is a bit for fun and flirtatious, as the singer puts on her
sex appeal to tell her man how she wants him to make her feel good in the
bedroom. The singer vocally sounds better in this track as she plays the sex
appeal role and the use of Auto Tune isn’t as terrible as the last track,
whilst the simple repetition used in the chorus makes for another song that has
a good ear snagging hook. The thumping bass and heavier essence of Spears sound
is well executed and makes for a more interesting listen, whilst T.I. provides
a solid rap for the bridge that sees him blend well with Spears in terms of
creating a male female chemistry that elevates the song and its message.
3.5/5
Track 6- Body Ache
David Guetta and his dance, party ready attitude comes back
in full force with Body Ache, an uptempo electro pop dance song that is all
about Spears wanting to dance till her body aches and she knows you want to as
well. The song has a bit of double entendre and is cool in this way but there
is lack of a strong chorus to grab the listeners attention, and whilst Spears
plays the sensual role well, she doesn’t sound as good as the previous track,
and at times the vocals just don’t make the song feel like we are listening to
a Britney Spears record. The snappy production with the heavy beats and strong
post chorus breakdown is fun but typical dance territory and just lacks that
feeling of being totally energising that you can’t help but get lost in it.
2.5/5
Track 7- Til’ It’s
Gone
Til’ It’s Gone is a song that keeps the powerful, heavy beat
dance vibe going, but it is more intriguing, and also finds Spears in a more
emotionally vulnerable state. The song is all about Spears telling this person
that he won’t realise what he had with her until it is over, whilst she also presumably
comes to the same conclusion herself. The simple, heartbreak embedded message
of the chorus makes for a much stronger, catchier party tune, and although clichés
are used, the message is potent and is particular strong when the bridge
begins. Vocally things still aren’t great but the Auto Tune is better than in other
songs, whilst the production value of the song is great in terms of the use of
the piano with really prominent dance rhythms and a little bit dubstep, heavy
EDM influences that are that bit more vibrant and more emotionally resonant in
a weird way than other songs of this calibre on the record.
3.5/5
Track 8- Passenger
Produced by Diplo and co-written alongside Sia Furler and
(perhaps surprisingly) pop superstar Katy Perry, Passenger is a much more
interesting and altogether better track from the beginning with the frenzied
electro opening that feels a little bit Indian influenced in a weird way. The song
finds Spears telling this person that she will go with them as she trusts them
in a way she has never trusted anyone before, and she just wants to go wherever
the wind will take them. The frenetic energy of the production and snappy tones
makes for a song that immediately grabs your attention, and with some punchy
guitar drums and forceful drumbeats, this is definitely a step better than the
EDM craziness that has dominated the record to this point. Spears’ vocals are
also stronger with this track as she seems to be truly enjoying herself, and
with a great pop chorus, this song is great and it just seems a shame that
Diplo and company somehow only have one track on the album.
4/5
Track 9- Chillin’
With You (featuring Jamie Lynn)
Chillin’ With You opens with a guitar riff that feels quite
country and which may signal that we are getting a totally different Britney,
but don’t worry, the EDM based sounds kick in, although this isn’t neccasarily
a good thing. The song simply focuses on the idea of Spears and her sister
Jamie Lynn telling us, this person or simply each other that they just chill
with them and are comfortable. The message is sweet but quickly becomes really
repetitive, and the vocals of both girls are ok but Auto Tuned and lacking some
great personality that would have made it a better listen. The songs sound is
also just to all over the place, trying to meld acoustic with dance beats and
heavy rhythms and just coming across as over powering and annoying.
2/5
Track 10- Don’t Cry
Opening with the same, acoustic driven guitar style of the
previous track, Don’t Cry is another song where we are sort of tricked into
thinking this is suddenly a different record, and then that idea is dispelled
quickly. However, the song is a little more understated and acts as the
emotional end that the record needs. Here we find Spears at the end of this
relationship where she finds closure and doesn’t want to see the person cry.
The message is simple and effective, whilst the vocals are sweet and nice if
not powerful enough to make the song feel as emotional as it should do. The
production could have been taken down a notch but the simple rhythm and powerful
bass makes the songs drama come out nicely, making this a nice if not great
end.
3/5
Final Review
Britney Jean: the eighth studio album by a renowned artist
who toted the record as her most personal to date, and a record that had the
least amount of media fanfare going alongside it at the time of its release compared
to her previous efforts. It’s a real shame then that this record doesn’t actually
sound all that personal, and really could have done with more media attention
just to get people interested. The record tries to be cool and innovative but
fails, melding standard pop Britney with a new EDM sound that has already been
done a million times before in the clubs and which is on the precipice of
becoming unpopular, whilst a lot of the time the singers vocals are so Auto
Tuned that she might as well being replaced by a robot. And that’s not me
saying that she is a great vocalist, because sorry people but face facts she isn’t,
but what I am saying is that she must have some sort of singing voice, and to
just Auto Tune songs like crazy is not the way to go about trying to maybe hide
vocal insecurities and weaknesses. There are some shreds of hope on the album,
like the pop ballad Perfume and (although it uses a very obvious pop cliché)
Til’ It’s Gone. And if Passenger isn’t a single in the future (preferably the
near future) then I will be disappointed with everyone concerned with Britney
Spears. But asides from this handful of songs, everything else just comes
across like pop fodder where Spears is simply clay to be moulded, not an exciting
artist that can still deserve the title of Princess of Pop. If there’s one
thing I can conclude from Britney Jean it’s this: get rid of the crazy
will.i.am, the root of all these problems, and have Britney go back to working
with Max Martin, Dr Luke, and trying some more stuff with Diplo.
3.5/10
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