Wednesday, 24 July 2013

Various Artists- Victorious: Music from the Hit TV Show Soundtrack Review


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Victorious: Music from the Hit TV Show


Artist- Various
                      

Nickelodeon have really jumped on the Disney bandwagon in producing hit TV shows with a music led narrative that leads itself to the release of albums of music. This album was the first music release from the hit TV show Victorious. With the program sadly ending after four seasons, I take a look back at the first release to see why the music was as popular as it was.


Track 1- Make It Shine

Opening track Make It shine is a simple pop track that acted as the show’s theme tune. Lyrically the track is clichéd but inspirational teen orientated lyrics that find singer Victoria Justice singing to us of her reserved and nervous feelings, but at the end of the day you should just go for your dreams and eventually things will be great for you. The track is light and fun and finds the singer giving us a smooth and light vocal performance that is reinforced by the use of Auto Tune and which feels very much like Justice is indeed shining. The production of the track features a steady drum machine bass with heavy synthesisers and so use of a gritty electric guitar to give the song this vibrant electro pop energy, and so this song is just and infectiously enjoyable tune that is perfectly catered for the programs target demographic.

3.5/5

 

Track 2- Freak the Freak Out

 

Justice first Billboard Hot 100 charting track and the highest charting single release from the album, Freak the Freak Out is another teen orientated electro pop tune with slightly more of a rock edge. Lyrically the track is thematically centered around managing relationships, with Justice putting on the role of a girl trying to get the attention of her partner who doesn’t seem to listen. The songs lyrical concept has a nice storytelling quality and the chorus is catchy in terms of its straightforward essence, although the ‘whoa’ hook is too clichéd. Justice gives us a vibrant vocal performance that has a bit more of a feisty tone than the previous song but which is still light and enjoyable. The relentless beats and synthesized instruments of the production gives the song a focused and fun dance quality, and so this is another track that is structured well and astutely commercially orientated.

 

3.5/5

 

Track 3- Best Friend’s Brother

 

Lyrically focusing on the idea of Justice crushing on her friend’s brother but not pursuing the crush for the sake of the friendship, Best Friends Brother features a writing credit from Justice herself and has a rougher and slightly more dance orientated sound than the previous single. The lyrics are cute but feel a bit too girly and simple, and so the song primarily would only be good for the main demographic of the TV show in terms of teenage girls. Vocally Justice gives a flirtatious tone to the verses, but the chorus feels like she is over singing and shows the weakness of her voice through the use of Auto Tune. The rough sound of the production with forceful electric guitar and punchy dance orientated beats is a vibrant sound that you can roll your head around to, but on the whole this song is too clichéd and doesn’t have the slightly more universal appeal of the two previous songs.

 

2.5/5

 

Track 4- Beggin’ on Your Knees

 

Going back to a lighter sound than the previous track, this is another fun dance and teen pop song that finds Justice in a fierce state of mind as she lyrically seeks vengeance on her boyfriend for his relationship with another girl. The song has a vibrant energy that is great in the way that the lyrics and vocals really build to a forceful chorus that is very catchy, with Justice giving us her strongest vocal performance on the record so far. The song is also cool in the way it is fierce but still very youthful and fun, with the production giving the song a nice sound that is based in this looping guitar riff and heavily synthesized dance beats. This is much more of a polished fun number and brings the record back to a more fun and less clumsy feeling quality.

 

3.5/5

 

Track 5- All I Want Is Everything

 

Initially featuring more of an acoustic based sound than the previous track in terms of the use of stirring strings, All I Want Is Everything quickly develops into another fun electro pop tune with slightly more of a pop rock tinge. Lyrically the track finds the singer finding that things are clearing and she is just going to give her all and just wants everything in life to feel alive. The lyrical content isn’t as great here as song borders on Justice being this spoiled girl who just wants everything rather than an aspirational lady. The vocal performance is light and fun but is too fast paced for the singer and doesn’t quite pull off the whole vibrant and goal achieving persona that you want. Whilst the production is interesting with the use of an orchestra, the song quickly dissolves into typical teen pop territory with the use of dance beats, and so this song just feels catered for teenage girls whose musical tastes don’t stretch far.

 

2/5

 

Track 6- You’re the Reason

 

Opening with a funky, more acoustic production before being joined by the slightly more frenzied electro bass line, this song is a light pop tune that can be seen as a love song. Lyrically the song focuses on Justice telling this person how they make her feel confident and just great, and they really need to know the role they have in her life. The songs lyrical message is sweet and clichéd, whilst the vocal performance is light and cute but doesn’t have a complete sense of originality. The songs production has a peppy energy with the use of more acoustically driven instruments, and so whilst it is typical pop for teenagers, the song is strong on this record in terms of the diversity that it offers.

 

3/5

 

Track 7- Give It Up

 

The first track on the record not to feature Victoria Justice, this track is sung by cast members Ariana Grande and Elizabeth Gillies. The song is another pop orientated tune, but the song is different as it has a little bit of an urban twist. The lyrics of the song find the girls in a very girly frame of mind as they sing to this guy who they like and who should just give it up and listen to his feelings. The track has a flirtatious edge that marks it out against the other tracks, and the girls vocals are a bit more powerful and attention grabbing than Justice, with the duo blending nicely in terms of harmonies. The production of the track features a strong electric guitar bass and a kind of funky rhythm that feels unique on the record, and so this is a strong musical offering that gives the record some nice variation.

 

3.5/5

 

Track 8- I Want You Back

 

A cover of the Jackson Five and the first song on the album to be completely credited as the Victorious track, I Want You Back sticks very closely to the original and is a simple pop cover. The track finds Victoria Justice taking a central role vocally, with her performance being light but lacking the real charisma needed for this song, whilst the rest of the cast provide smooth and soulful background vocals and harmonies. The song simply features a more pop driven sound than the original version in terms of the clattering piano melody and peppy, synthesized beats, and so this is a nice light cover but only works for people who aren’t really that familiar with the original song (i.e. the TV shows target audience).

 

2.5/5  

 

Track 9- Song 2 You

 

The first of the album lite piano ballads is a sweet song sung by the shows cast members Victoria Justice and Leon Thomas. Lyrically the track focuses on the idea of not being the best person in terms of designer clothes and material things, but they have a nice heart and give this girl this song. The track is light and cute with vocal performances that blend well together and have a heartfelt quality, but the song’s lyrics feel very clichéd, and although the bridge is powerful in terms of the vibrant electric guitar, the rest of the songs sound just feels like typical teen pop rock with the steady drum beats and light electro orientated beats, and so this is just another catered for one type of market track.

 

2/5

 

Track 10- Tell Me You Love Me

 

Another lite pop piano ballad, this track finds Victoria Justice singing once again with Leon Thomas, but this time she takes a central role vocally. The song finds the duo singing to this person about how they know they have been hurt in the past, but if they admit there love everything will be all round. The cute simplicity of the tracks lyrics is nice and more catchy than the previous tune, even though the songs lyrical message is something that is typically recycled in pop. The duo once again blend together nicely, but with the preppiness of the production with the simple pop piano melody that track feels slightly more powerful, and so this is definitely a better piano pop ballad.

 

3.5/5

 

Track 11- Finally Falling

 

At first you think this is another pop piano ballad, but then the feisty drum machine bassline kicks in and the track develops into this simple pop rock orientated tune that brings the record back to this firm, up tempo state. The track lyrically focuses on Victoria Justice as this girl who finally sees things clearly and doesn’t care what other people think, because she has finally fallen in love. The simple tone of the sound production is preppy and bouncy and so just feels infectious, with the sweetness of the tracks lyrics being quite catchy. The vocal performance is also just light and sweet, and so definitely makes the track more believable.

 

3.5/5

 

Track 12- Leave It All to Shine

 

The album ends with a mash up of the show’s theme tune with the theme tune of another hit Nickelodeon TV show, ICarly. The songs theme tunes are also nice in their own way, but this mash up feels designed purely for the fans of the show and doesn’t work as an actual cool track in its own right

 

2/5

 

Final Review

 

This record is largely commercial orientated dance, electro and teen pop music that caters well for the shows audience, but can’t translate to a wider audience. However the songs that are here are for the most part expertly crafted, with catchy lyrics, enjoyable vocals and astute pop production that is just infectiously fun, and so as far as teen orientated music shows go, this is a strong offering that is potentially among the best.

 

5.5/10

 

Best Track- Beggin’ on Your Knees

 

Worst Track- All I Want Is Everything

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