By Jake Mahr
Theme Editor
Creativity, originality and ingenuity are often the aspects that take an album and an artist to the top of the charts. Kelly Clarkson, on the other hand, seems to be stuck in a jungle of redundancy and can’t find her way out.
Undeniably, Clarkson is a successful artist, yet she fails to demonstrate her capability in her latest album, “Stronger.” With little variety or depth, Clarkson’s lastest album quickly becomes plodding and predictable.
Clarkson’s music career started in 2002 when she won the first season of “American Idol” and was propelled upward into the music industry. She then released her debut album, “Thankful,” which included her first single, “A Moment Like This,” both of which were instant successes and gained her a large following of devoted fans.
In her decade-long career, Clarkson has become the most successful former American Idol winner worldwide and has numerous Grammy Awards to back it up. Her second, third and fourth albums were all accomplishments as well, but “Stronger” may not sit as well with her fans.
There is no doubt that Clarkson is a strong, powerful singer, but she just wasn’t able to utilize her voice to create a different listening experience on the album. All of the tracks feature the same loud and bouncy Kelly Clarkson vocals that, although well-executed, also permeate the songs of her previous four albums.
November 4, 2011
La Vista
arts
16
Clarkson’s full-bodied voice can be compared to that of contemporary Adele, who also uses vocals as the main component for her songs. Yet Adele is able to control her voice in a way that creates a variety of listening environments and evokes strong emotions, a feeling that Clarkson should be able to create but fails to demonstrate on this album.
The predictability of the song choice is one of the factors that makes this album a boring listen. The songs feature the same sob story about a lousy relationship and the same revenge-filled themes that appear in most of Clarkson’s songs.
Going hand-in-hand with the song choice, the underlying rhythms are no different from what is used in Clarkson’s previous albums. They are still the fast-paced, hook-laden rhythms that she seems unable to break away from and grow artistically.
Clarkson gets closest to escaping
balladeer persona, as well as the “carnival barker from hell” persona. Waits’ newest record features some of his most beautiful songwriting to date juxtaposed with junkyard howlers.
Waits has among the largest of cult followings in modern American music, influencing modern blues, alternative rock and punk music. He began his career as a somewhat conventional singer-songwriter, until his album “Swordfish Trombone,” in which it seemed as if he had a piece of glass lodged in his throat.
After his voice began to transform, his music followed suit. His songwriting began to feature a combination of some of his earlier soulful songwriting, along with newer, darker stylings, ranging from Dylanesque barking to jazzy song-speak.
“Bad As Me” fits right into Waits’ discography with its varied songwriting. Album opener “Chicago” would feel right at home on Waits’ seminal record, “Rain Dogs.” It features a terrifying horn section, as well as Waits’ classic sleazy, streetwise and poetical lyricism. The song is a great palette cleanser. Listeners might approach it as if the track would set the tone for the rest of the album. This is not the case, as “Bad As Me” is seemingly incapable of maintaining a singular sonic identity.
“Bad As Me” can be as jarring as a ship in stormy weather, with its staggering tonal dissonance from track to tracks. Listeners can groove to sinful ditties like “Get Lost,” which feature Waits’ signature sing-speak style, for one moment.
Suddenly, listeners will be treated with tracks like “Face to the Highway” (the track directly after “Get Lost”). Tracks like this feature blusier singing and sparser instrumentation.
Yet still, the album can veer into vastly different sonic spaces. “Back in the Crowd” is a straight-up love song, where Waits attempts to reconcile with a lover. The track features lush, quiet instrumentation, with Waits singing at nearly a whisper.
Occasionally, the album harkens back to what many consider
ing this habit during “Dark Side,” where she fills most of the song with a softer touch that sends the listener into a more peaceful state. Still, she tries to make the song an energetic dance-beat, when she should really be focusing on staying away from these overly animated sections and work on composing a different, more soothing, melody.
The lyrics of the entire album are the most unoriginal, unsatisfying weak spot to an already sup-par recording. Clarkson was unable to sing lyrics that conveyed any sort of emotion or deeper meaning, and simply stated clichéd slogans that she could have easily change with more expressive and emotional lines.
“Stronger” is definitely one of Clarkson’s weaker albums, and it is disappointing that she couldn’t produce anything more creative, considering her talent. The album is now available in stores nationwide and on the Internet.
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