Miley Cyrus - Can't Be Tamed
Hannah Montana star Miley Cyrus approaches her 18th birthday this year. Having already released two very successful pop albums to her obedient tween audience and achieved worldwide success with the chilled, cool Party In The USA as well as keeping up a striving movie career, one poses the question, how does the Queen of Tween make her transition to bonafide pop princess. With this record, Miley snarls back, 'watch and learn...'
The album kicks off with the fiesty and ferocious declaration of freedom
Liberty Walk. Miley snaps about those who have 'tied her up' across zooming synths and makes it clear this is a new Miley Cyrus - the rebellion has begun and if you don't like it you're out of luck.
Who Owns My Heart follows, a eurotrance club tune with whispered vocals asking who owns our teen sensation's heart - love or art? One would judging by this record so far - cash, truly posses Miley's heart.
Things flow nicely on to the album's lead single
Can't Be Tamed, a Piece of Me-esque electropop stomper with similar themes of being uncontrollable and free. The little girl who skipped around a stage singing the Best of Both Worlds is now fully sexed up and rebelling against society's expectations. Not exactly an original concept for an album given those who came before her's almost identical defiance. Miley begs those around her in the album's bridge 'don't change me', yet on the contrary, it seems to be Miley herself who is making the changes here.
Miley takes the autotune down a notch on the record's first ballad.
Every Rose Has It's Thorn is a clichéd, unoriginal dribbled shmaltz-fest. Luckily, things don't get stuck in the mud as she swiftly picks things back up again with the peppy, guitar ridden
Two More Lonely People. Miley once again shows that she can bash out a typical bouncy pop affair with the best of them. Having already lived through three public relationships, Miley sings with more emotion and sincerity than ever before.
Forgiveness and Love confirms what was becoming more apparent. While Miley has never been so experience and genuine in her entire career, she seems to have totally lost her knack for belting out a decent ballad like we saw on The Climb and Simple Song. From what was definite low point, the record swiftly moves on to one of Miley's best ever pop songs.
Permanent December is a Ke$ha like, autotuned flirtatious electro romp complete with a chanting sing along chorus and childish lyrics that make you want to forget your troubles and dance.
Stay is probably the strongest ballad of the record. She manages to wail with an ounce more conviction than before over a generic dramatic instrumental. Following this,
Scars is cute little song but ultimately, filler material, with no apparent purpose other than to make up numbers. The pianos kick in once again on
Take Me Along an optimistic, mid tempo power anthem that's totally pleasant and enjoyable, if a little forgettable.
The album closes how it began with it's final couplet comprising of
Robot and
My Heart Beats For Love. The former is an edgy, loud demonstration of liberation demanding those around her to stop treating her as a machine, claiming she's just 'me'. The latter, she claims to have penned for the gay community - if the girl can do nothing else, she can hedge her bets. It works well as a closing farewell and what could be Miley's last ever pop song as the singer recently revealed her plans to retire from pop music altogether.
Miley accomplishes quite a bit with this record. By the third track alone she's shed her Hannah Montana image and you forget that this seductive, brazen pop vixen was once a tween sensation. Whilst you won't find a single morsel of originality here, what Miley does provide is a thoroughly enjoyable, consistently well produced fluffy pop record. She sings with more vocal prowess and conviction than ever before and really makes you hope that her plans to bow out from music for the foreseeable future fall through. However should her plans remain intact, Can't Be Tamed serves it's purpose as a very worthy farewell to pop.
Strongest Tracks: Can't Be Tamed, Permanent December, My Heart Beats for Love, Liberty Walk.
Weakest Tracks: To be quite honest none of the ballads did much for me, but I'll definitely be skipping Forgiveness and Love further more.