Artpop by Lady Gaga

 7/10 
Rated:Charming Music

One of the most awaited (by many people) albums of the year is finally released and comes with two sides: the boring one and the fun one in which you can find songs that are closest to what 'The Fame' was so there are dance-y and catchy joy-pop tunes, on the other side are the theatrical overworked songs and that at this point are boring and too fabricated. The album is 50/50 about natural and 'faked' songs, when is natural the songs are glorious and bring back memories of why we all talked and followed her, but some songs crossed the line and are far too much Lady Gaga cliché and sound like and amateur pop star that want to be her,that where many in 2011-12.The music is nice, sometimes powerful, but needed to step it up so as for the lyrics that are not very encouraging as they were in 'Born This Way album', in some way this is more a 'selfish' album like it was the first but not as good. But with all the media and the behaviour and BTW  the expectations have been quite low, so this is kind of a victory.

The sound of the album is not really modern, although at some point it does has some elements of modern music,it is mostly inspired by 80's music, once again for Gaga, and lacks of something that get it out from 2008-2011 era. Most of the music nowadays are following the trend that is trying to bring the 1990's but Lady Gaga didn't follow it, and stayed with her sound and the 1980's influence is all over so it does sound a bit dated ,not what you can call POP music. Unfortunately when it tries to sound modern it gets weird with too much drama layers and there is too much happening in a single song, which is also too long. The album needed so much more  edition , 15 songs are so much, some sound like are there just to fill, the drama needs to chill down (like some songs that have it that is in the right amount so the song is entertaining and not shocking-in a bad way-) and the record needs something that is really appealing and that make it wanna listen for it own merits,not just for the media attention it has. Conclusion: The album is fine and give a slightly different idea of what pop is nowadays(Refreshing?), it will entertain you but  is not her best and not the best pop album in this year, neither the best pop in the past three months so is not very exiting, the pop is once again in the hands of what surprises us and this is not astounding .

Recommended: Applause, Dope,ARTPOP,Do What U Want  

Matangi by M.I.A.

7.5/10 
Rated: A Kind of Magic 

Finally after almost two years of the release of the first single, 'Bad Girls', M.I.A is back with this album which is her fourth and her first in three years, and last one was so forgettable, that this is almost the first good thing we hear from her in ages. Her more coherent album to date have many intriguing sounds and is entertaining, full of catchy memorable sounds this "comeback" is strong and will refresh a bit the pop industry,and maybe give a lesson. Includes duets with The Weeknd and kind of sampling Blur's Charmless Man. Probably is too long because you can perceive some songs that are not as creative as others and also fails to be as chart pop as some songs aspire to be. There are elements of nowadays music but probably not so good executed. In every Song there's a twist that makes it interesting.
 

The music of the album is incredible and keeps you awake because is so energetic, although is nothing new and not very modern it has a Gorillaz style so is kind of eclectic , and with some 'folkloric' / 'ethnic' sounds mixed with electronic sounds so thats what brings the sound up to date also it sometimes resembles a not so bubblegum pop Katy Perry,some bit of Mad Pop-Hip-Hop . Everything works fine and harmonic, keeps up with previous M.I.A albums but this aims more to be fashionable, or to follow a trend but in her own style not just to impact but to trace and spice up her career and be on the spotlight. There are beats of reggae, hip-hop, plenty of pop, electronic, dance, r&b all mixed together with this thing apparently called 'worldmusic', so is very what we are used from M.I.A but pumped up. The fun this album have overcast the dullness it has for tracks that sound like a repetition of previous works.

Recommended: Sexodus, Bring The Noize, Come Walk With Me, Bad Girls,Matangi

Avril Lavigne by Avril Lavigne

5/10 
Rated:Mr. Personality

Avril Lavigne is back to her old tricks and it seems that they are not working this time. This self-titled album is a step back to what Avril was trying to left behind by being more mature and personal in last album  ('Goodbye Lullaby') . Silliness and immaturity are back teamed up with pop to create songs that we have previously heard in a so much fun  version. The album sounds a lot like 'The Best Damn Thing ' (2007) days mixed with modern pop tunes and tries so hard to be catchy,it's just messy. Many ideas on and trying to revive something that is so burned now and old .

The good thing is that there's a little exploration to new sounds , at least from her style, but unfortunately it mostly goes wrong and weird in a bad way.The album jumps in a song, from a cheessy  female version of stagnant in 2003 Nickelback, which is obviously a duet with her partner and lead singer of that band ,Chad Kroeger, to a ruined by Avril, forced to be rebel song with Marilyn Manson, everything connected by an post-grunge mixed with bad pop aura. Mostly the rest of the songs are what wouldn't even work to fill a pretentious pseudo princess of pop album, it includes songs inspired by K-pop and what Britney Spears last album would have been if it were produced by Nicki Minaj  and without the edition arrangements. Definitely Avril's most  cringeworthy to date, it has no a proper direction and sounds dumb with no connection to her public.

Recommended: Sippin’ On Sunshine,Here’s To Never Growing Up

Free Your Mind by Cut Copy

6.5/10 
Rated: (I can't get no) Satisfaction 

This album is too basic pop, could have been so much better, there's a perceptible fear to fail (again) that the band went for the safe road by trying to repeat 'In Ghost Colours' which is fine but it lacks in surprises and wildness and has far too much of trendy music that is very confusing . There are plenty of pop sounds that you can hear in the charts nowadays ,which isn't very from the band to take fashionable sounds and then mixed with their style, so you can feel something is wrong. If you dig a little and separate some pop beats you can find some delightful music, thankfully, and know what this band is about,is just that there are several layers of abstract late 80's-early 90's pop revival , and is hard to identify the band because many people is doing the same these days and this album doesn't stands out.  

The album is more friendly and pop than the last one and the essence of the band is a bit lost but when is shows ups is kind of good because, very similar to the DJ style of the first album and with the dynamic of the second one so is really good but sadly not good enough or with the same impact. This album is pretty much an attempt to repeat, so it lacks of new music and/or surprises, that previous three works had, so is pretty annoying because the band have everything to stand out from the bunch. The record sounds like a boring reprise of the bands more successful single to date 'Lights And Music' but remixed by a beach-y David Guetta in a house style.At the end the album at least is entertaining and spice up a little from previous album but that there are not wild or attractive moves, neither catchy sounds (and is what tries to do), and that is hard to distinguish the band from similar artist is what makes this record plain (dull). Nice but could have been so much better and intriguing.

Recommended: We Are Explorers,Let Me Show You Love,Footsteps

Prism by Katy Perry

7.5/10
Rated: A Kind of Magic

Perhaps not her best but this is a one great pop album. Katy Perry has had something in every album  that make you say 'This song is going to be a hit single' but this new album lacks of it, which could be good, because every song, aside from 'Roar', sound like the non singles from her previous album so it somehow gives more variation and eclecticity to be range of a typical Katy album. Also there are some explorations to new sound, a bit hidden but there's a variety of sounds that are very interesting maybe not new but rather surprising.

This album keeps a bit the vibe of '...The Complete Confection' which was about healing but without being very dramatic. Katy Perry transmits her personal feelings by singing with party mood and sometimes silly songs, so is more cheerful than an Adele or something.The sound is a mix of what is trendy  in many genres , not just in pop so it adds a intriguing sound that is fashionable but is predominantly timeless. Katy gets rid a bit of the 80's influence and goes into this new trend to bring the 90's back, specially  in 'Walking On Air' in  which Katy did a nice work that is an amazing piece of 1990's eurodance revival.Even thought is like an healing album and has few powerful songs it goes more to the corny and romantic way that she found a new love and everything seems bright now etc. so is very cheesy and less fabulous than her previous works but at least it is entertaining and natural. Music helps very much to create this joy and to feel related to it, is more to carry on with old fans rather than make new ones.

Recommended: Roar,Legendary Lovers, Walking On Air,'This Is How We Do,This Moment

Moon Landing by James Blunt

6.5/10
Rated: A Kind of Magic

After his 'retirement' James Blunt is back with his fourth production which is, once again, an attempt to reconnect with that affliction that make him famous. Almost 10 years since we started hearing of him with his first ever single and now James is trying to bring those days back by recruiting one of the producers of his first album ,Tom Rothrock, but unfortunately this album is too lost in trying to be modern and to put something new/fashionable in the industry. It does have a vibe like first two albums which where different but something joins them, this could came in between them if it were not so confusing(messy). But not everything is wrong, the album even comes to be a nice fun, after all ,with a few surprises.

Music saves the record because although it keeps with the beachy-silly vibe of last album on this it gets right. There are many interesting and unexpected sounds that flow natural that may go unnoticed but it is what keeps this album being entertaining. At some point it does get really cheesy and girly but there's a bit of balance with more dramatic music almost like an low budget orchestral thing and James Blunt does that passive-aggressive voice he has already done in previous works ,so theres sort of a relief after many corny stuff .  The mayor problem is that it does sound forced to catch up with many sounds that are trendy this days that it gets weird, if the goal was to make it modern James Blunt should have gone for something more like Ellie Goulding and it would fit perfectly  because it has the base and the potential but just needs to spice up with more electronic music to go into this 'folktronica' synth-dream- pop thingy.

Recommended: Face The Sun, The Only One,Sun On Sunday

Aftershock by Motörhead

8/10
Rated: Music is my Radar  

If getting electro-shocked was fun this is how it would sound. From the beginning to end this album is powerful and it transfer the good classic feeling of the genre. After many years this band is one of the few that still demonstrating that you can release several solid albums without changing drastically and just by upgrading. The album has all the elements of a band that is a milestone and creates classics and is mixed with little bits of modernity and a lot of rhythm so is very attractive for old and new fans. 'Aftershock' is probably one of the most friendly,not as heavy as it could have turned,  albums of the band that still got the essence of the band very marked. It sounds old but modern, experimental/amateur but wise... to be more simple it kick ass and can give a lesson to many dummy bands out there.

The record sounds LIKE being influenced by 90's and early 00's electronic music,more specifically Trance, which gives a very appealing sound/combination to the incredible display of guitars and percussion.The music is simply delightful, it apportions rock and roll and hard rock,once again, and bring an enjoyable heavy metal  .Not  everything is explosions sometimes it is softened with some blues like music that puts balance in between craziness.  A burst of energy to your ears.

Recommend: Keep Your Powder Dry, Dust and Glass, Death Machine, Lost Woman Blues, Coup de Grace