- They load all the great tracks in the beginning and let the rest of the album flail along
-They load all the fun tracks in the beginning of the album, leave the middle empty and pick back up towards the end
-Load the album with the hottest DJs, rappers, guest singers and producers making the album sound dated.
Mariah Carey's twelfth studio album has managed to avoid all three of those fatal errors that singers today make. This genius of an album goes with her classic diamond status albums "Music Box" & "Rainbow" and easily silents her critics who was not too fond of E=MC2 or as comedians used to call it E=FAT, referring to how unflattering she looked on the album cover. Everything from the album cover to the lyrical content to the musicality of the album is perfect for what Mariah fans needed to hear from her and perfect for the expectations that music industry has for her. This album does lack however is the belting and outright vocal brovado that "Emancipation of Mimi" had but who cares, most of us bought 'Mimi' loved it, enjoyed it and it won 3 Grammys that year resulting in the Billboard-hailed best selling album of 2005.
This album however finds her working with a limited production staff consisting of The-Dream, Tricky Stewart and when they're not present Jim Wright who is 1/3 of the production team Terry Lewis & Jimmy Jam of Janet Jackson fame. That was a smart move, We rarely get to hear people like Jim Wright on their own (this is true about Chad Hugo of The Neptunes and until as of recently Danja of Timbalands production). Jim Wright was a good addition to the album and his work is heard on the tracks "Betcha Gon' Know", "Angels Cry" & "I Want To Know What Love Is" (alongside Randy Jackson of American Idol fame). The rest of the album was produced by her label mate and now one of her bosses The-Dream. That right there was another smart business move, keep it in the label family and have access to some of the best music in R&B/crossover.
This album can carry single-worthy status from beginning to end however there are some stand outs. "H.A.T.E.U." though I tried not to review this song, it grew to become one of my favourite tracks listed later on, shows Mariah at her lowest register taking nothing away from her singing, it shows that she can do something other than coo and whisper however she does give you on hell of a whistle throughout the song. "Ribbon" which carries the classic "Radiokilla" sound with the slowed down fat guy singing on the background, its smooth like butter and the harmonies are easy on the ears. "Insperable" runs a fine-line between originality and sampling Natalie Coles "Inseperable" though the former is not mentioned as a sample however I love the fact that she DID sample "Time After Time" by Cyndi Lauper for this track and make it something you can two-step to. "Standing O" is definetely an angry-bitch song and if you sit through the track you will absolutely love the way it ends! "It's A Wrap" has an amazing throwback to the likes of Cissy Houston and Brenda Franklin (Aretha Franklins sister) on the background wailing and I mean Mariah is wailing on that background vocal. The song has an early 60's feel to it. "Up Out My Face" is a song Janet Jackson wish she had on her upcoming album, it's very much the title of the song letting the guy in the situation know ummm you need to get to steppin, and theres a lovely shout out to Nick Cannon on the 50 second addition to the album thats classy without being in your face like other R&B couples. "The Impossible" which is Ryan Drake of www.adtv.com song of choice, This song shows Mariah being genuinely sexy without being campy, glossy, glitzy or corny.
I finally determined "More Than Just Friends" produced by The-Dream as my favourite track as it just oozes late 90s B.I.G.'s "One More Chance" and "Angels Cry" a fierce vocal performance in which in reverse she does her whistle register in the beginning and climaxes throughout the song. I am actually hoping she releases "More Than Just Friends" like next week or the week after her album release. I feel as she could have absolutely left "I Want To Know What Love Is" completely off the album
I am still at a lost for words at the fact that there were two left off this album. One called "Imperfect" which according to L.A. Reid was not a strong enough song for an album this consistent and a undisclosed track produced by Timothy "Timbaland" Mosley.
In closing this album is definetely worth the buy on iTunes, Wally-World (Walmart), Target, Virgin Megastores, HMV (for the UK'ers) and my favourite place Best Buy. It is the first album since "Music Box" and "Daydream" that had showed a consistent presence of musicality from beginning to end as I raise my left eyebrow and purse my lips, I say that save from "I Want To Know What Love Is" I only bash the song not because its a bad vocal performance but because it doesn't fit in the rest of the album. It's like the child that came out looking different from the family of 12 kids. Just get the album, you won't be dissapointed.
1. "Betcha Gon' Know" (additional producer(s): James "Big Jim" Wright) — 4:00
2. "Obsessed" — 4:05
3. "H.A.T.E.U." — 4:28
4. "Candy Bling" (additional writer(s): Ahmad A. Lewis, Stefan Gordy, John Klemmer) (additional producer(s): Los Da Mystro) — 4:03
5. "Ribbon" — 4:21
6. "Inseparable" (additional writers(s): Robert Hyman, Cyndi Lauper) — 3:34
7. "Standing O" — 4:00
8. "It's a Wrap" (additional producer(s): Heatmyzer, James Wright) — 3:59
9. "Up Out My Face" — 3:41
10. "Up Out My Face (The Reprise)" — 0:51
11. "More Than Just Friends" (additional writer(s): Sean Combs, Chris Wallace, Rashad Smith, Mark DeBarge, Etterlene Jordan) — 3:37
12. "The Impossible" — 4:01
13. "The Impossible (The Reprise)" — 2:26
14. "Angel (The Prelude)" (additional producer(s): James Wright) — 1:04
15. "Angels Cry" (additional writer(s): Crystal Johnson) (additional producer(s): James Wright) — 4:02
16. "Languishing (The Interlude)" (additional writer(s) & producer(s): James Wright) — 2:34
17. "I Want to Know What Love Is" (written by Mick Jones) (additional producer(s): James Wright, Randy Jackson) — 3:27
Drink of Choice With This Album: A glass of Pomegranate Martini filled all the way up
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