Rated 'I Wanna Go'

Britney's Femme Fatale tour kicked off last week and, I must say, it looks incredible. I'm not so sure about praising a singer for singing 40% of their 'live' show with a live vocal, but I guess for a Britney tour that's pretty impressive (hmmm). From the clips on youtube I gather that it's a pyrotechnic, dance fuelled, booty shaking extravaganza. The opening with 'Hold it Against Me' is brilliant, as is her performance of 'Don't Let Me Be The Last To Know' from the Oops! era.

Anyway, back on track. The video for third Femme Fatale single, 'I Wanna Go', dropped the other day and it's pretty epic. Random, weird and ridiculous, but oh so much fun. What's great about it is that it's the first glimpse of the old Britney Spears being back in the real world again. Her constant glazing of the eyes is gone and she has some sass back in her, which is a relief because as questionable as her input in her work is, she is the biggest pop star of her generation. The most key aspect of video, pushing aside the Terminator style robotic paparazzi and Britney looking a bit Avril Lavigne, is that Brit looks HAWT.


The song itself is one of the better moments from 7th studio album Femme Fatale. It's anthemic dance pop with a killer hook. The robotic Britney makes a return on the track and it works here because she's at least recognisable. "I’ve been told who I should do it with, to keep both my hands above the bl-an-ket, when the lights out...", sings Britney, challenging those who dictate how naughty she's allowed to be. It doesn't have the huge finish of 'Hold it against me' or 'Till the world ends', but 'I wanna go' has enough punch to make it a classic Britney song.

Rated 4

Beyonce surprised me when she released the epic ass shaker ‘Run The World (Girls)’. I then surprised myself by leaping from a venomous hatred for the song to an epic love that has me imitating the shoulder shudder on every dance floor I grace. You would think, going by what the lead single suggests, that the forthcoming 4 would be an album in much the same vein as past material. Lots of uber feminist and patriotic booty bumping a la ‘Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)’ and some sexually charged grind like ‘Video Phone’. If you’re expecting any of the above then you’re about to be surprised, shocked and maybe even disappointed. However, what it lacks in sass and sex appeal, it makes up for with passion, aggression and determination.

Don't use 'Run the World' as a basis for judging this album, this is the best advice I can give you in relation to 4. It's the closer and although would have been nice as the introductory track, when you grasp the structure of the album you appreciate it as an ending. The tempo begins at zero but reaches climax when the Major Lazer sampler beats the doors of love down. So just sit back and relax and gird your loins for the epic finish. Don't do as I have done and listen to the critics who are saying the album is "horrific", "messy", "worst album ever". I have been pleasantly surprised by the final product and although there is one weak moment, by Beyonce's standards, this is a damn solid album.

Rated Flashback - Spirit Room

There's one album that sticks with you from your teen years and showers you with nostalgia upon every listen. That one album for me (aside from the likes of Jagged Little Pill and Hotel Paper) is The Spirit Room by Canadian singer/songwriter Michelle Branch. She never took off over here, but she made a pretty big impact overseas, scoring a Grammy and 3 top 40 singles, not to mention the 2million+ sales of the album in the US alone.

This album sticks with me because it's, simply, catchy as hell. It's pretty standard acoustic pop/rock from the early 00s, but there's just something rather marvellous going on here that I've never been able to put my finger on. Whether it's Branch's distinguishable vocals, emotion driven performance, the brilliant melodies or the well constructed lyricism, I do not know. Maybe it's a combination of all the above? I was only 13 when this album came out and some pretty harrowing stuff was going on in my personal life at the time, thus the reason it's remained a pretty important part of my musical therapy collection. I felt down recently so I whipped it out and began soothing my soul once more.

With singles 'Everywhere', 'All You Wanted' and the superb 'Goodbye to You', the album couldn't really go wrong. There's not one filler, every song feels like it's been carved out of musical stone, and the non-singles are either equally as effective and fun as the released or they take things to another level. 'Sweet Misery' and 'Something to Sleep to' for example, are startlingly awesome pop songs. The former, probably my favourite from the album, features a lovely vocal performance and stunning choral melody, something that recurs throughout Branch's work (she's got a knack for cracking out hooks). A surprising moment on The Spirit Room is 'Drop in the Ocean', which goes from haunting love song to a trippy Tori Amos style dancey number. This is a bout as sonically experimental this album gets, but it is supposed to be a pop/rock album, not a 'Professional Widow' style collection.

Sounding mildly like Alanis Morissette in her earliest years, Branch's vocal style reaches a similar sound at her higher pitches. However, Morissette's material was beyond her years at Branch's age and was as intricate and metaphorical as lyrics can possibly get. The Spirit Room certainly is not Jagged Little Pill, the main reason being a lack of maturity. Branch's age shows with her coolly named book of love songs and angst. However, as young as these love songs are they're written masterfully. Song writing is Branch's main forte, proven with the release of second album Hotel Paper, which had more love songs but more maturity, making for a slightly darker sound (emphasis on slightly). This is an album that will always stick with me, kind of like a child hood teddy bear that keeps reappearing every time you start to feel a little low.