//Neon Reviews: Kelly Clarkson – All I Ever Wanted//
March 9, 2009 by Story Gilmore
Filed under Reviews
Catchy hooks? Check! Addictive melody? Yes! Dynamic vocals? Also there. All are the ingredients for the successful return to Pop music for the original American Idol, Kelly Clarkson.
Clarkson abandoned the world of light, mainstream goodness for a darker, edgier Rock turn on her 2006 release My December, much to her labels dismay. After the album [...]
//Review Bits: Gavin DeGraw – Stay//
For his third studio album, Gavin DeGraw set out to make an album that goes back to the basics, that strips away the barriers between the raw magnetism of the music and the listener’s ears.
A two-week long jam session in a New York studio with producer Camus Celli resulted in Free, a collection of 10 songs exhibiting [...]
//Neon Reviews: Lily Allen – It’s Not Me, It’s You//
It sounds like a friendly little ditty. The sonic atmosphere echoes like a hop-scotching children’s tune, but the lyrics are brazenly adult. “So you say it’s not OK to be gay/Well I think you’re just evil…F*ck you. F*ck you very, very much,” sings British songbird Lily Allen in the sweetest tone with only a hint of [...]
//Neon Reviews: Kanye West – 808s & Heartbreak//
Kanye West has never gotten anywhere by following trends–he’s been setting them since debuting in 2004 with his album College Dropout. His debut single, “Through the Wire,” featured the Chicago rapper spitting the lyrics of the song, literally, through the wires that held his jaw shut weeks after a car crash nearly took his life. It’s that kind of [...]
//Neon Reviews: Britney Spears – Circus//
December 1, 2008 by Story Gilmore
Filed under Reviews
The word circus perfectly describes the last 2 years for Britney Spears. But between the hospital stays, mental evaluations and court proceedings, Britney Jean Spears did manage to have some high points: seemingly cleaning up her act, her MTV Video Music Awards wins and her brand new album, appropriately titled Circus. Widely referred to as [...]
//Neon Reviews: Shontelle – Shontelligence//
23-year-old Barbados-born Shontelle has the unforunate disadvantage of being constantly compared to another Bajan beauty: Rihanna. It doesn’t help her cause being on related record labels, being discovered by the same producer (Evan Rogers), and being managed by the same company. One skim through her bio would lead you to think that she’s just a gimmick; a [...]
//Neon Reviews: Beyoncé – I Am…Sasha Fierce//
There’s no doubt that Beyoncé is a superstar. During the last 11 years in the spotlight, she’s sold over 100 million albums as the lead singer and driving force behind Destiny’s Child, the best-selling female group of all time, and released two multi-platinum albums of her own as a solo artist. Let’s not forget about [...]
//Neon Reviews: David Archuleta’s Self-titled Debut Album//
November 11, 2008 by Story Gilmore
Filed under Reviews
Season 7 of American Idol was sort of a let down. The drama factor was low, there were no William Hungs born and the talent was pretty mediocre. It did manage to produce a few stars: its reigning champ, incredible rocker David Cook and the silky smooth voiced youngster, runner-up David Archuleta. The kid affectionately [...]
//Neon Reviews: Christina Aguilera – Keeps Gettin’ Better (A Decade of Hits)//
November 8, 2008 by Story Gilmore
Filed under Reviews
It’s been 10 years since the world was first introduced to the little girl with the big voice. The girl who proved all cute, blonde pop stars weren’t talentless manufactured robots in a year when they were being churned out faster than Vanilla Ice’s career. To celebrate this milestone in her career, Christina Aguilera partnered [...]
//Neon Reviews: Lady GaGa – The Fame//
Pop has gotten a bad name. It’s a three letter word, but now-a-days, you’d think it was a four letter word. Something dirty. Something to be ashamed of. You hide all songs considered ‘pop’ in a unmarked folder on your mp3 player while being proud to proclaim yourself a fan of Prog-Rock or that new [...]
