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by Bootleg Al Now I’ve always been a ‘fan’ of Christina Aguilera, or X-Tina as the cool kids seem to call her these days. Originally exploding onto the scene with the infectious Genie in a Bottle it was obvious that she possessed something that her pop-peers severally lacked. X-Tina however was always the poor mans Britney, the pretty girls more slutty best-friend who would always let you touch her up behind the gym. Exciting and titillating granted, yet always lacking in thrill and satisfaction. Or at least that was until X-Tina unleashed Dirrty upon the world. A sleazy r’n’b piece of pop perfection boasting arguably the greatest, and filthiest, music video ever made (courtesy of David LaChappelle), propelling her into a relm all of her own as she raised the bar of sexual promiscuity and female empowerment in music. To be honest just hearing that song gives me a hard-on. Then she dropped the album. It was the album that proved to the world that X-Tina was no longer a bubblegum pop princess but rather an uber-sassy sexual predator. Not only possessing a vocal range rivaling any soul diva on the planet. However, after the jaw-dropping Dirrty, Stripped failed to deliver past the adolescent and teeny bopper crowd. Sure it was a commercial success but after promising so much the album was regrettably a collection of painful power-ballads, dull r’n’b and weak pop. It was therefore with extreme skepticism that I listened to her new album Back to Basics, a (sort-of) concept double-album made up of early 20th century jazz, soul and blues influenced pop songs. Chosen come-back single for the album was the infectious DJ Premier sample-adelic Ain’t No Other Man, built around an attention grabbing horn loop and a double-quick rhythm section uncharacteristic of Premier. X-Tina's raucous vocals themselves where not only brought under control but also sped-up to a rap-like tone, giving the track an immediate urgency, commanding even the most die-hard bar-proper to get on the dance floor. It’s a sassy, sexy and phenomenal piece of work. Someone caught me listening to this the other day and wrote it off as a ‘guilty pleasure’, “guilty pleasure?” I said, “Nah, it’s just too damn good to be guilty”. Back to the album however and, like Stripped before it, Back to Basics fails to deliver on its promise. Makes Me Wanna Pray opens proceedings, a Rich Harrison (the man who brought us the infectious but overly unrewarding Crazy in Love by the equally unrewarding Beyonce) produced power-pop number that revolves around a looped Traffic piano riff and huge (over)powerful gospel choir that not only compliments X-Tina’s exquisite vocal but also provides a rich backdrop to showcase the almost otherworldly vocal range this petite girl possesses. So far so good. Next up we get Back in the Day, a hip-hop drenched r’n’b funk number which finds X-Tina name-checking the artists that she intends to ‘borrow’ from over the following 20 tracks, Etta James? check, Coltrane? check, urgh, Primus beats and scratches do manage to salvage some dignity and appeal but fundamentally it’s just daff. After arguably the years finest pop moment (Aint No Other Man) is over in barely three and half minutes you might as well hit stop. The rest if the first disc moves in much a similar vain, grooving along while X-Tina does her thing. The productions impeccable, the singings impressive, it’s just a bit….average, really, really average. Disc two however is nothing but a waste of fucking time. I really do hate double albums. Produced exclusively by Linda Perry, CD2s only highlight has to be Save Me From Myself which exposes X-Tina’s vocal at her most vulnerable and innocent, comprising just her naked vocal alongside acoustic guitar and minimal orchestral backing. Unfortunately being the eighth track of the record I fear very few people will ever make it that far to hear it. The rest of the album is expectedly frustrating, there are the obligatory overblown ballads such as Hurt and The Right Man, as well as the faux-swing stylings of tracks like Candyman which come across more like a modern Jive Bunny for the drunken hen-party crowd. I’d
like to be able say ignore the second disc, the first disc makes up for
it. Unfortunately it doesn’t. Download the single then steer clear
of the album at all costs, unless that is you’re a 16 year old girl. |
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CHRISTINA
AGUILERA - BACK TO BASICS