Pixie, Young and Foolish.

Pixie burst onto the pop scene in 2009 with lotts of success thanks to some aggressive marketing. Her first two singles hit number one on the UK charts, the debut album Turn It Up remained a fixture in the official album charts for well over a year and she earned a place in the Guinness World Book of Records. In the short interim, she’s launched multiple fashion lines, starred in movies and collaborated with a wide range of musicians and producers.

 

One might expect then that the talented youngster, who has turned herself to so many tasks successfully, would be able to deliver on the difficult second album: having promised a more mature sound and attacked those who branded her a manufactured pop puppet.

Unfortunately, Young, Foolish, Happy comes off as a clichéd attempt to find a niche in what has become a year eclipsed by Brit leading ladies, with the vocal prowess of Adele or sass of Jessie J. The innocent and fun pop of Turn It Up may have been an antidote to the dominating R’n’B Timbaland and synth partying Black Eyed Peas in 2009, but here the album struggles to find momentum or direction.

Take lead single ‘All About Tonight’, which reads much in the same vein as ‘Boys and Girls’. There is little hint of any progression or change, rather Pixie comes across rather unenthused, uninspired and uncommitted in the lack of middle eight, or the continuous need to remind us “It’s all about tonight” at every opportunity, verse or chorus. Follow up ‘What Do You Take Me For?’ only managed to 'make up' for this, at least for the boys, by providing a video of Pixie in tight leather.

This stereotypical pop base really prevents any movement. Cheesy centric ‘Kiss The Stars’, widely rumoured to be the next single, sounds like a track one may expect to here at a 5 year old’s birthday, but then jars with its euphemisms “Get in position: Put your plug in the socket… when you turn it on I can go for hours.” The rather contradictory tone almost dictates that Pixie doesn’t understand the direction of her new release; which is shame, as a reworking of lyrics and experiment with rock or dub influences (popular trends in the charts) may have proffered a much more interesting listen.

Similarly, numbers akin to ‘Perfect’ and ‘Birthday’, both harmless pieces in themselves, are instantly forgettable and commonplace filler material that the album could do without.

Most disappointingly, Pixie promised a more soulful album, and the maturity doesn’t shine through. Lyrics and ideals of her debut actually spoke more meaningfully about the troubles and strife of young love and life: ‘Gravity’ and ‘Broken Arrow’ both exceptional in this respect.

Where Pixie attempts to imitate this, there are glimmers of hope for the album. ‘Bright Lights’ with Tinchy Stryder actually reflects neatly on chart trends this year, speaking of the hopelessness of city life, its pitfalls and problems masked by the luring lights. ‘Dancing On My Own’ equally talks of the struggles of a relationship formed on dreams, but hit by the problems of money and job loss. These tracks connect with the audience for their true to life form and simplicity.

However, the focus on formulaic pop leaves Pixie out in the cold. Perhaps next time, she shouldn’t spread her career so thin, and consolidate efforts into the production of the album. The two very different sounds on Young, Foolish, Happy clash quite horribly and there needed be a greater exploration and development of one particular area. A mediocre album with only a handful of standout tracks and promise, we guess it’ll be another batch of material heavily promoted by sex appeal.

Rihanna - Talk That Talk

Rihanna’s sixth studio album, Talk That Talk, comes as a little bit of a surprise. Earlier in the year, the star announced a repackaged version of Loud would be released in time for the impending holiday season and that seemed quite satisfactory considering the album was still providing singles that were dominating the charts worldwide. However, in a production whirlwind, Rihanna tweeted the prospect of a new album, bagged a number one single with producer extraordinaire Calvin Harris, and found studio time amidst a hectic tour schedule.

Of course, the major concern is that the material will be rushed and unsatisfying. With more critics suggesting music industry saturation and a lack of creativity in the charts, the release of an entire new album just one year after the overwhelming success of Loud almost appears premature and manufactured. However, interviewed last week, Rihanna said that she “did not want to appear a gimmick” and her manager defended the quick turn-around of material. Nonetheless, the polished pop of Loud is a difficult act to follow.

The solution is a tightly packed album that places itself between the rocky angst of fan favourites Rated R and the party pieces of its predecessor. Debut single, ‘We Found Love’ is quite atypical of the material as a whole: offering a party vibe, whilst haunting in the new found fragility in Riri’s vocals. Whilst some have criticised the single for its simplicity and repetitive lyrics, this is artistic reflection of the simple and pure love desired by the star and is all the more meaningful for its powerful delivery.

Indeed, despite any wayward comments regarding lyrics, the new strength of the album appears to be that Rihanna’s vocals are flaunted in a much more emotional manner than on Loud and it adds an extra dimension to the work to counter any worry of a churned out pop disaster. Particularly impressive in this regard is the bittersweet finale to the standard edition, ‘Farewell’, which sees a friend or lover leave for a better life, whilst Rihanna tries to cope with the change.

This theme of (absent) love forms the base of the album, and perhaps this is part of the refreshing appeal: no longer are the tracks generally built around euphemisms and the prospect of sex, but the more fragile and gentile aspects of relationships too. Highlight ‘Where Have You Been?’ superbly capitalises on Rihanna’s party vibe and could be played at the clubs without a remix, but lyrically, the song talks of the torment and anguish before finding romance.

Elsewhere, ‘Drunk On Love’ samples The XX’s ‘Intro’, which perfectly complements the hauntingly wistful voice of the musician whilst ‘Roc Me Out’ reads like the lovechild of ‘Hard’ and ‘What’s My Name?’, with its heavy electro rock synth and deep vocals.

Tracks ‘Cockiness’ and ‘Birthday Cake’ first appear somewhat at odds with the rest of the material, jarring with their prominent mid-point position. However, they help counter Riri’s public persona: her bravado, built up with the hype of ‘S&M’, leaves the star quite isolated and imposing. Here, both tracks feature to depict this is but one side of Rihanna, and that overwhelmingly, the Barbadian beauty has been alone for quite some time. Besides, the reggae-come-calypso infusion of ‘Cockiness’ is rather seducing and reminiscent of hot, hazy summer days.

Perhaps single life has provided this surge in raw emotion that sees the songstress connect more wholly and satisfyingly with her material. Whilst the album is far from experimental, solidifying avenues explored by Rihanna in previous work, this release carries some poignancy as the 23 year old looks to other matters in her life than the stardom acquired at 17. Before out of her teens, she had released three albums and broken worldwide records with ‘Umbrella’. The demure and reflective tone is testament to the hard work so far, whilst the club influences remain a gesture to how much fun the star is having nonetheless.

An album that is without doubt the most exciting mainstream release of the final quarter, due to this eclectic mix.

All music, Def Jam Island Records and Rihanna. Fair usage for comment.