I'll try and work out the new score for that later on
For Ava Max... I've been pretty vocal about not understanding the appeal with her this year (and last; I was mortified to discover it's already been almost two years since the release of 'Sweet But Psycho'), and I was going into this album somewhat open minded. There are some strong highlights; I love the most recent single 'Naked', the production is crystal clear and full of pop excellence. The gothic melodrama of 'Born to the Night' is also relatively fun, and evocative of this campy, Cascada-does-Halloween vibe that also resurfaces on 'Belladonna' (which, if you can get past the facade that seems purpose-built for Tiktok kids to insert into their clips of putting on skeletal makeup, is also fun). Earlier single 'Torn' is probably her best; a catchy vocal and a melody that borders a little close to ABBA's "Gimme Gimme Gimme" (or Madonna's "Hung Up", if you prefer).
But for every highlight there's a single like 'OMG What's Happening' or 'So Am I'; the former is a mundane listen, alluding to a vague lover-spurned story that lazily tries to inject personality with a spoken middle part, whilst the latter is just...
grating. Repeating the same line over and over again can sometimes work (just ask 2017 Carly Rae Jepsen) but it needs a melody or a backing to pack the punch in lieu of clever wordplay, and this is lacking in both.
There are other moments that just can't disguise their filler roles; 'Call Me Tonight' underwhelms in every sense, whilst the padding out of the album to match the title's thematics results in a completely pointless show from 'H.E.A.V.E.N.' and 'Take You To Hell' (the latter shows promise with a Stranger Thingsesque intro, but then just turns into something Sia might slap together for a crappy animated movie).
A lot of the production and writing that goes into 'Heaven & Hell' is some impressive billing... for 2011. Chief producer 'Cirkut' was responsible for hits including Kesha's Die Young and C'Mon, Katy Perry's Roar and Part of Me, and Miley Cyrus' Wrecking Ball. If you search further down his list of contributions, you begin to get to the struggling careers and forgettable 'hits' of the likes of Iggy Azalea, Fergie and Jennifer Lopez. And so, we're left with Ava Max. Last decade's sound... today. I give this a
5.