Aguilera‘s ’Lotus‘ is good, but not great

Christina Aguilera
"Lotus"
(RCA Records)

Christina Aguilera is easily one of contemporary music’s best voices. She‘s got pipes that music-lovers need to hear at a time when Top 40 radio features studio-enhanced vocals and award shows are full of lip syncing. That’s why her fifth album, "Lotus," is somewhat disappointing -- not because it isn‘t good, but because it isn’t great.

Sure, it‘s an improvement from 2010’s "Bionic," a chaotic album that is Aguilera‘s only one not to reach platinum status. "Lotus" is more focused, thankfully, but not as satisfying as her first three releases.

The new 13-track album is the singer’s first music offering since she filed for divorce two years ago. And when she‘s emotional, she sounds best.

The title track kicks off the album nicely as Aguilera sings about starting over. On "Best of Me," she sings: "Words cut through my skin, tears roll down my chin, my walls crumble within." And later in the song she sings in a beautiful belt: "I will rise undefeated, I will not let you bring me down." You just want to cheer her on. Sing it, girl.

Another standout is the piano tune "Blank Page," co-written by Sia, whose work with Aguilera on "Bionic" is that album’s highlight. "Sing for Me," too, is great and sounds like a personal anthem for Aguilera, who has gotten a boost recently as a coach on NBC‘s "The Voice."

Where the singer falls short is on what are supposed to be the "fun" songs, like "Red Hot Kinda Love," "Around the World" and "Make the World Move," which features a barely heard CeeLo Green. The first single, the Max Martin-produced "Your Body," is also a miss. Martin is a little better on his other contribution, the dance-heavy "Let There Be Love," which sounds typical of what’s out there, but still feels like a radio hit.

It‘s almost like Aguilera isn’t getting the best material from the songwriters and producers on "Lotus," which includes Alex da Kid (Eminem‘s "Love the Way You Lie," B.o.B’s "Airplanes"), Lucas Secon, Supa Dups, Claude Kelly, Bonnie McKee, Tracklacers, Steve Robson and others. Her excellent voice deserves excellent songs.

(AP)


Lana Del Rey delivers on new EP ‘Paradise’

Lana Del Rey
"Paradise"
(Interscope Records)

Lana Del Rey‘s new eight-track EP "Paradise" shows the singer is still in the same emotional flux she was when she released her debut album 10 months ago. She’s lamenting the pains of love.

Del Rey has an almost affected vulnerability in her voice, at certain points its quivering adds to the gravitas of the lyrics, like when she sings "Don‘t turn around, leave me high and dry" on the Rick Rubin-produced first single, "Ride." The song was co-written by Justin Parker, who helmed most of her debut, "Born to Die," along with Emile Haynie. "Ride" is as perfect as "Video Games," the single that propelled her into the limelight.

"American" uses simple strings and piano which allows her smoky, effortless vocals to take control. "Cola" continues the Americana theme, but in a playful, tongue-in-cheek way. And "Body Electric" sounds like it’s straight from a Western film, where Del Rey is again playfully poking fun at America -- "Elvis is my daddy, Marilyn‘s my mother," she claims.

The 26-year-old’s entrancing vocals make it almost hypnotic to listen to anything she sings, but that‘s not always the case: "Bel Air" and "Yayo" are just fillers.

(AP)


Newcomer Daley has promising future

Daley
"Alone Together EP"
(Universal Republic)

There’s something magnificent about Daley‘s sweet tone -- he coos on songs lightly, but it’s also demanding and emotional. That swag was all over his 2011 mixtape, "Those Who Wait," which was top-notch from its opener to its closing number.

The English singer borrows three songs from that album for his six-song EP and major label offering, "Alone Together." It‘s short, sweet and satisfying.

The song that is propelling him to R&B fame, "Alone Together," is soft and breezy. It features fellow English R&B singer Marsha Ambrosius, and their tones blend nicely on the track; sometimes you’ll forget who‘s who. He keeps up with the English-R&B theme by covering Amy Winehouse’s "Love Is a Losing Game" and collaborating with Jessie J over a hip-hop beat on "Remember Me."

"Blame the World," with its strings, is a winner, as is the feel-good "Game Over." The 23-year-old singer-songwriter -- who has collaborated with the Gorillaz and received two nominations at this year‘s Soul Train Awards -- closes with "Those Who Wait," a song about breaking through with lyrics like: "I’m waiting because I know I‘m going to be next in line to claim my prize and be all that I want to be." You got that right.

(AP)