Posted June 5, 200718 yr Feb 2007 International superstar Kelly Clarkson is back and raring to rock, with 'My December', her third album, and the follow-up to 2005's 'Breakaway'. Produced by Grammy winner David Kahne (The Strokes, Bangles, Sugar Ray, Paul McCartney), 'My December' is Clarkson’s most personal album yet, all of which she's either written or co-written. First single, 'Never Again' is best described as "a 21st century idea of hard rock, incorporating loops and other studio effects to find a middle ground between the raw and the cooked". L.A. punk legend and bassist Mike Watt, currently playing with Iggy and the Stooges, appears on three songs, while Clarkson's other touring band members, Jason Halbert and Jimmy Messer, also contributed. Whether it's the funky new wave of 'One Minute', the startlingly confessional 'Sober', the meditative, soulful Christine McVie-style strains of 'Be Still', the bluesy Joplinesque twang of the cheeky, kiss-off song, 'Chivas', the blues hard-rock of 'Hole' or the full-throttle Pat Benatar howl of 'Haunting', 'My December' shows another side of Kelly Clarkson, who said, "I'll always come out with a different record each time'. Clarkson's gift is finding the source of vitality in absolute mainstream, people-pleasing pop, which by its nature breaks stylistic rules in favour of magpie mash-ups, bold appropriations and happy accidents. Edited August 15, 200717 yr by JBM
June 5, 200718 yr But then again it will be all so much sweeter when it does leak if we have to wait a bit for it :D
June 9, 200718 yr Author Never Again - shouldve 100% a lot better than it done. great opening track. opens up the album nicely and sets it up for the rocky theme of the album [8.5/10] One Minute - the live version did not do this song justice AT ALL. its a fantastic track. nice mixture of electro pop/rock. great rock dance tune. [10/10] Hole - good mid-tempo rock tune. definitly displays kelly's songwriting talent with its catchy short chorus which will stick in your head after a few plays [8/10] Sober - amazing follow up to the first single off My December. Clarkson's use of the metaphor "Sober" again showcases her talents as a songwriter. the chorus, where the entire band kicks in, shows off Clarksons amazing vocal talent [10/10] Dont Waste Your Time - great up-tempo pop/rock track bringing back the Breakaway days :wub: [9/10] Judas - great rock track about someone betraying you. hence the title Judas even though Judas is not said once in the chorus or bridge [9/10] Haunted - AMAZING rock ballad? 'nough said [10/10] Be Still - slow track about love. a bit bland though. [6/10] Maybe - with every great album there comes one track that stops the great run through of the album. great lyrics though but would be better if there was some rhythum to it [5/10] How I Feel - once again another AMAZING pop/rock track from kelly's Breakaway days. so as a round up, pop/rock, breakaway one of the best tracks on the album [10/10] Yeah - great guitar riff. the live version did not do it justice AT ALL. the only thing that lets this track down is the screechy YEAHHHHHHHHHHHH for the chorus [7/10] Can I Have A Kiss - as kelly asks, can i have a kiss? well kelly you can have many. starts off as a slow track but then kicks it up to a midtempo bridge and chorus. why ask for one when you can have many? [9.5/10] Irvine - Irvine not only showcases but pratically deserves a grammy for best songwriter (if there is one). this song is so emotional and has so much effort put behind it [10/10] Chivas - hidden track? i hate them. Chivas breaks this barrier. great guitar and lyrics. the only problem is the way kelly's voice is recorded. sounds like a old record from the 60s. [9/10] OVERALL: amazing album. dont know what Clive Davis has agaist this album. may not be to everyones taste but definitly deserves some FANTASTIC sales and should defo become platinum+ . The only thing that lets this album down is a few bland tracks [9/10] Edited June 9, 200718 yr by Joao Filipe
June 10, 200718 yr Oh I'm glad you gave it a good review! Would you say it's better then Breakaway? I won't let myself illegaly download albums from my favourite artists :(
June 10, 200718 yr Author ummmmmmmmmmmm i would have to say no. as much as i like My December, there are some tracks that could have been livened up a bit like Maybe. but My December is close to being as good as breakaway but in answer to your question no it isnt.
June 10, 200718 yr I hear this is a blandfest, it's only hardcore fans who seem to rate it. And I don't think much of the new single. I'm really beginning to reconsider buying this album :o
June 10, 200718 yr Author have a listen to a few of the tracks. some are amazing and others are just meh
June 10, 200718 yr My Review: 1. Never Again - We all know it, people either love it or hate it, I'm in the "Love" category myself. 10/10 2. One Minute - This is really cool, it really kicks in on the chorus! Really easy to sing to 9/10 3. Hole - Again this really kicks in, in the chorus and the guitar riff playing is AWESOME! 10/10 4. Sober - I LOVE the synth sound used at the beginning, I think it's the second single (not the best choice). The song is quite good! 7/10 - just for the synth sound lol. 5. Don't Waste Your Time - I find it a bit boring, doesn't seem to go anyway. It's uptempo but the chorus doesn't have anything to it 4/10 6. Judas - Typical angry Kelly, the one we all love! Great tune 7/10 7. Haunted - The chorus is what makes this song, the verses are a little dull. 7/10 8. Be Still - Bland ballad... don't like it 3/10 9. Maybe - RIGHT sorry Joao I adore this!! My favourite track, the guitar is AMAZING the vocals are spot on! LOOOOVE! 10/10 10. How I Feel - It sounds happy at the beginning, but it's not lol. I do like it though! 6/10 11. Yeah - I love this! The drums are great and the trumpet sound is great too! Her vocals on the chorus are great! 9/10 12. Can I Have This Kiss - At first it sounds bland as hell, but the chorus is great. My standout from first listen (before I fell in love with Maybe) 10/10 13. Irvine - Ballad, sounds live and her vocals are amazing, very angelic. 8/10 14. Chivas - I don't like the effect they put on her voice (the muffled down the telephone sound) but the guitar in the background is cool, not the best though. 5/10 Overall: I LOVE it, I like it even more knowing that she put so much creativity in to it! The only issue I have is I wish they had put SOME sort of Reverb or effect on her voice as it sounds a bit bland at times. Great CD though! Well done Kelly! My average score: 7.5/10
June 10, 200718 yr Author ^:P the beginning is a bit bland i only wish that it would have started the uptempo bit earlier
June 10, 200718 yr Im initially unimpressed :( and im a big fan usually. But, some tracks are nice on first listen, how i feel,one minute and judas being faves of mine :) Its abit samey though :(
July 4, 200718 yr Author You can't say the woman lacks balls. For her follow-up to 2004's ten-million selling Breakaway collection, Kelly Clarkson has ditched virtually every musical characteristic that made her successful – the crisp, radio-friendly production, the gleaming songwriting contributions from hitmaking duo Max Martin and Dr Luke, the lethal, gloriously unsubtle hooks that propelled 'Since U Been Gone' and 'Because Of You' to the top of the charts – in favour of doing her own thing. My December is an ugly, inelegant but ultimately rather compelling bid for creative control. Current single 'Never Again' is a useful indicator of where Clarkson's head is at. Over ringing guitar riffs and frantic, Queens of the Stone Age-style drums, the one-time American Idol hisses sub-Alanis Morissette lyrics about being chewed up and spat out by, well, a guy who sounds like a right nasty bast*rd. “I hope the ring you gave her turns her fingers green,” she seethes, in one of several lines that sound like lyrical offcuts from Morissette's Jagged Little Pill rage-fest 'You Oughta Know'. Song after song that follow – the pounding, insistent 'One Minute', the bludgeoning, Garbage-esque 'Hole', the bluesy Janis Joplin tribute 'Yeah' – are equally turgid and uncompromising. Only the strident, swaggering 'Judas' gives Clarkson the sort of all-consuming chorus that her herculean pipes really deserve. And yet, there are moments of unexpected beauty to counteract My December's overwhelming musical gruffness. 'Sober', a hopeful ballad on which Clarkson shows off the full might of her voice, achieves a grace that much of the album is lacking, while closing track 'Irvine', with its delicate acoustic guitar arpeggios and languidly sexy vocal, proves, once and for all, that Clarkson can do subtle. After enduring the 45 minutes of musical chest-beating that precedes it, it's a revelation akin to finding out, at the end of a porn movie, that the busty pin-up you've been ogling for the last two hours is actually a trick-playing t*****. Ultimately, My December is a bitter pill to swallow from Clarkson. It's hard to accept that a singer who went supernova after releasing an album filled with more hooks than an out-of-town angling superstore chose – well, fought tooth and nail, to be precise – to make an album this devoid of stand-out pop moments. Rumour has it that label honcho Clive Davis offered her $10 million to scrap five of the more brutal songs from My December and replace them with catchier, more radio-friendly contributions from professional songwriters. You can see his point: there's nothing here that seems capable of taking over the airwaves the way 'Since U Been Gone', 'Behind These Hazel Eyes' or even 'Miss Independent' did. Nevertheless, there's a pleasing paradox in knowing that the album that's most baffled the music industry this year hasn't come from a bunch of punky upstarts from an underprivileged LA suburb, nor from an avant-garde East End electronica outfit, but from a Texan former cocktail actress who made her name on a reality TV show. That's postmodernism for y'all, we guess. 3/5
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