Britney Spears, Blackout Review

Good Points
Well what can one say? It's Britney! an excellent album to put on when your pals are round before you hit the town. Britney's back.

Bad Points
It's the only Britney album not to contain a ballad. If your expecting the next Every time or Shadow or I'm Not A Girl (Not Yet A Woman), you'll be disappointed.

General Comments
The fallen pop princess makes a return to the music charts with Blackout. Do we like? Well....actually yes. Like the title track from her second album, Oops!....She Did It Again. Really, she has. On first listen I wasn't so sure but now I think that Britney has got a fantastic album on her hands.

The first track Gimmie More I find quite ironic. Believe me, fans of Britney, after listening you will definitely be wanting more of her most bizarre one. Track number 2 sees Miss Spears working with producers Bloodshy and Avant (Toxic) once again to bring us Piece of Me. It's a big up yours to the media and critics claiming that everyone still wants a piece of Britney. These two tunes set up the rest of the album nicely and carries on the future pop theme running through Blackout.

The closest thing to a ballad on the album is Why Should I Be Sad. Written by Pharrell Williams, this song I think is the most personal song that Britney has put on an album. Blackout in general is the most personal album Britney has done.

Let's get Naked (I Got A Plan), Perfect Lover and Ooh Ooh Baby are three raunchy little numbers with some heavy breathing a going on from Britney which oddly works. Also the male vocals on Ooh Ooh Baby, make this song one of my favorites of the album as they just work incredibly well.

The only disappointment I have with this album is that there is a total lack of ballads. Personally I feel Britney should have maybe gone for a more rounded, mixed-tempo, album with at least one beautiful ballad. However, my opinion in that sense, I think that despite all the hectic and crazy things going on in Britney's life (and head!?), she has managed to put out a bum shaking, futuristic sounding pop which is more than half decent.

A lot of critics have slammed the album saying that her vocals are not strong or are lost beneath the synthetic beats. I disagree. There are songs in which I find that Britney's voice is secondary to the synthetic beats but I feel that this adds to the song a feeling of disengagement, not unlike Miss Spears estrangement from reality.

Nevertheless, I totally stand by Britney and think that Blackout delivers. Welcome back Miss Spears and may you continue to work alongside these amazing people that you work with to produce such fantastic music. Well Done!