Before I begin this, let me just clear the air and say I am not a Cheryl hater. I have fallen in love with "Call My Name" and there were a few tracks on her last album that I genuinely enjoyed! I respect Cheryl a lot as an artist, I think she's beautiful and I think she has a genuine talent. Again, I am not a Cheryl hater.
That said, I listened to A Million Lights twice in a row when I got my hands on it. The first time I listened to it I was slightly disappointed. The second listen was even more underwhelming. I decided to sleep on it and listen to it again this morning. Turns out it didn't get any better. Perhaps it has something to due with the massive hype surrounding the album. She's inescapable in Europe and since a large portion of the blogs and news outlets I follow are that, I have been seeing her name a lot. So yes, I was very excited to get my hands on this!
I whittled it down to a color-coated guide to help you listen to this album.
Amazing! Good. Tolerable. Bitch Please.
1 Under the Sun2 Call My Name3 Craziest Things (feat. will.i.am)4 Girl in the Mirror
5 A Million Lights
6 Screw You (feat. Wretch 32)7 Love Killer8 Ghetto Baby9 Sexy Den a Mutha10 Mechanics of the Heart
11 All Is Fair
12 Boys Lie
13 One Thousand14 Telescope15 Last One Standing
5 A Million Lights
6 Screw You (feat. Wretch 32)7 Love Killer8 Ghetto Baby9 Sexy Den a Mutha10 Mechanics of the Heart
11 All Is Fair
12 Boys Lie
13 One Thousand14 Telescope15 Last One Standing
Sure, the album will go #1 and have a large amount of immediate success, but it's more so because of the current media frenzy that surrounds Cheryl and not because the album is great. If you couldn't tell by my guide above, the album is quite middling. The only songs that truly stand out on the album are the lead single, "Call My Name" and one of the plethora of dubstep tracks, "Love Killer."
A huge issue lies within this album trying to push trends further than were the mainstream media is willing to go. Yes, dubstep is hot right now, but in small bits. Her vocals are sometimes swallowed by the massive wobbling beats. The cure is simple: tone down the dubsteps and throw in some music to fill in the production. Some songs sound empty.
The albums biggest potential triumph, "Ghetto Baby," ends up being a confusing case of identity crisis. The song was penned by Lana Del Ray and you can tell that Cheryl did absolutely nothing to make it her own, though the song is still good.
There are just light touches that could have been made here and there that would have turned this album from being a cute album to last me until the new Girls Aloud albums comes out into being a classic pop album. There's no personality. Cheryl could take some notes from Nicola Roberts, who oozed charisma, but that would probably have limited hit potential on the album. Cheryl will surely have no problem selling singles, but I don't see much success on the charts or among the critics for too much longer.
This album, for me, is a 6 out of 10... and I feel like I'm being a tad generous with that. Download worthy, but I wouldn't spend ten bucks on it. That shouldn't stop you, though. If you like it, buy it!
flop review - opinions
ReplyDeleteIf reviews could be fact there would be one and it would be boring. _____/ <--- a lawn chair for you to rest because you're clearly tired.
ReplyDeleteWhat is this laughable review? At least give some proper criticism. The production on this album is amazing and while she could have infused a little more personality into it, she did more than well enough with what she had, based on the final result. I'm not sure what you were expecting from this album when she used Call My Name as the lead single, but the end result didn't veer far away from it at all.
ReplyDeleteSometimes great productions aren't enough.
DeleteSays Anonymous. like who are you? I don't see you having a pretty face and talent like me!
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't say she has a low level of talent, I would just say she sold herself short on this album. She could have done much more.
ReplyDeleteHalf good, half skippable imo
ReplyDeleteIs this a serious review?
ReplyDeleteOne of the best albums so far in my opinion.
I appreciate your opinions but its like we have complete opposite tastes, the ones you said that are amazing I find highly skippable, the ones you said were less than amazing are all my favourites! Makes life interesting I guess.
ReplyDeleteYou guys should stick to leaks and not reviews. I don't love this album, but damn everyone who writes articles on this site seems to not know how to structure an argument. Stick to what you're good at--leaks.
ReplyDeleteSites like Hard Candy Music and MuuMuse are good at reviews because they put more time and thought into what they say about music. The reviews I've seen you all put out recently are just hodge-podge messes thrown together with Elmer's Glue.
Honestly I feel like each and every album made by Cheryl is shitty. Only some songs are good like 'The Flood'. I've listened 'Love Killer' and if this track is amazing, then I'm scared to listen to the 'bitch please!' rated tracks o.O''
ReplyDeleteConstructive criticism - There's something fake about her records. I don't know. Maybe she needs to feel music before she jumps into preforming it, because commercial success is not all.
It's just a matter of taste. I honestly love every track on this album, and I do think that it is pretty consistent. I think it is much better than Justin Bieber's latest effort, for an example, and to know that her album sold twice as many as his in the UK just prove that I'm not the only one who think this.
ReplyDeleteI'm hooked on Cheryl! This album is amazing and it will stay on repeat for a long time to come! There's not a single song I feel compelled to skip. I didn't bother to read the review. The only review I care about is my own. GO CHERYL!
ReplyDeleteLoving these fan made covers!
ReplyDeleteAlso, I believe that the review is very honest and thats what you want from a review.
I agree with it in some ways and others not so good.
The production is what gives the album the boost whereas her harmonised vocals and unoriginality brings some aspects down.
That being said, Cheryl is an amazing respectable artist and deserves all she gets because she has the wow factor, she is a fantastic performer and she does make some brilliant music, something many artists can't bring both together.
In short: The album will appeal to some (Her big fans) but it won't bring in the wider audiences. I think the singles will bring her more success than the album itself.
Again, this is just my opinion! :)
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ReplyDeleteHey, can anyone please stop throwing evil words for Martin? He just voiced his opinions and in no way, meant to bash Cheryl. People please, you gotta be able to appreciate someone's writing.
ReplyDeleteMartian, read that and you'll understand everything you said is SO accurate! http://thatgrapejuice.net/2012/06/cheryl-cole-connection-lyrics-debuts-song/
ReplyDeleteThis girl should have been a model, she has clearly NO identity on the process of "her" music. And I don't even know why beacause her voice/vocals are just wack!
Have you even read the interview? She says that the lyrics do not have a meaning, they have a feeling. They are just feel good songs, that's what she's saying. Half of Britney's album, Bieber's album and others are exactly like this, they just don't say it to not look bad.
DeleteI thought the album was pretty good...it's better then her previous 2 albums
ReplyDeleteLol you girls are so fickle. Just because you disagree you feek tthe need to attempt to drag. I could rent out the entire staples center and it would be enough seats for you. It's just an opinion, not a dictation. If you disagree, just say that. No need to try and hurt me because you can hurt me by clicking on this page and raising the coin in my account.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on Ghetto Baby I'm a huge LDR fan and I was excited just to hear the song, and yeah she tries to hard to sound like Lana
ReplyDeleteMartian, you're the best. Fuck haters. I've been taking you very seriously since I first found this blog 5 months ago. Greetings from Venezuela.
ReplyDelete