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Review Summary: Like vanilla ice-cream with very little topping. It’s all Kanye’s fault. To many, much of whatever credibility the Idol franchise still had, flew out the window when Kris Allen was voted the winner of the 8th season of American Idol. How he conquered any of the top five contestants, let alone eventual runner-up Adam Lambert, shall continue to astound. We’re (allegedly) talking nearly 100 million votes here folks! Surely good looks and a little charm can only get one so far in the music industry! So here we are six months after his victory and Allen has now delivered his self-titled debut to the masses. Anyone who saw just one of the 24 year old’s Idol performances already knows what this LP sounds like. It is that predictable, that safe and that average. It’s like vanilla ice-cream with very little topping. Not necessarily bad, but oh so boring.
Admirably, Allen has at least co-writing credits on nine of the thirteen tracks included here. Two of the remaining four will most likely draw comparisons to Maroon 5’s urbanized pop-rock. Those with a little more familiarity with the genre however, will instantly recognize the tracks as offcuts from Irish trio The Script. Lead single and album opener ‘Live Like We’re Dying’ could actually pass for one of their songs, such is Allen’s identical imitation of Danny O’Donoghue. The majority of the album’s simple first half continues along in a nice enough fashion, with Allen’s inoffensively smooth vocals holding interest, if not exactly having listeners reaching for the repeat button.
Unfortunately, as the album progresses, each piece gradually becomes slower and blander, until almost every song becomes instantly forgettable due to a lack of significant variation. There is one notable exception though; the acoustic ‘Alright With Me’. With its playful & bouncy feel-good vibe, it stands out as a rare highlight that is destined for future release as a single. It is just too bad that it is stuck in the middle of four cures for insomnia! By the time closer (how can a bonus track be a bonus if it is on every version of the album?) ‘Heartless’ comes around, it is too easy to forget that this interesting stripped-down version of Kanye West’s hit was the Idol moment from nowhere which propelled Allen to stardom.
So by logical deduction, we can only come to one conclusion; It is all Kanye West’s fault. If Taylor Swift’s best friend had not recorded ‘Heartless’ in the first place, Allen could not have reworked it and would never have won American Idol. And if that were the case, I would seriously doubt that he would have even had the opportunity to release an album. Sure, there are a handful of half-decent cuts included here, but even they have limited lasting value. Meanwhile, the filler (arguably half the LP) is mind-numbingly boring. On the back of this effort, it should not be difficult for Adam Lambert to prove 50 million people wrong in a week’s time.
Recommended Tracks: Alright With Me & Heartless.
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caiocoletti (3)
Idol's champ takes a tuneful debut, filled with accurate hits, but rarely takes any risks, and leave...
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Album Rating: 2.0
Album needs more blue make-up.
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is "allen" just a coincidence?
| | | Album Rating: 2.0
"is "allen" just a coincidence?"
Sorry, I'm not with you.
"it reads like you're butthurt over the results of a television show."
Nah, couldn't give a toss. I've actually stated before that it is advantageous for a contestant to finish runner-up. And I wasn't a huge Adam Lambert fan either. But at the end of it all, Lambert should have won. Or Danny Gokey. Or Allison. Or the piano guy. Or the blind guy. Not Allen though.
| | | Album Rating: 2.5 | Sound Off
I don't like this much either, but I'll state that I've never been a Kris fan. On the show, I thought Kris was a dime a dozen while Adam and Allison were unique. So I'm more inclined to like the albums from Adam and Allison. At least Kris is better than Danny, though.
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"is "allen" just a coincidence?"
Sorry, I'm not with you.
lily allen you iguana
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huh?
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Psh.
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Psh psh.
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Whoa short Davey Boi review oh my.
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While the review is correct musically, it reads like you're butthurt over the results of a television show. I disagree. I think it sets up (and ends) the review nicely and only serves to reinforce what a waste the album is.
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To many, much of whatever credibility the Idol franchise still had, flew out the window when Kris Allen was voted the winner of the 8th season of American Idol. How he conquered any of the top five contestants, let alone eventual runner-up Adam Lambert, shall continue to astound. We’re (allegedly) talking nearly 100 million votes here folks! Surely good looks and a little charm can only get one so far in the music industry!
Kris Allen is from my home state of Arkansas, and I can testify to the fact that when he even started to get close to the end, Kris Allen mania swept across the countryside like a raging fever. Arkansans don't really have much to go crazy for, so when someone makes it big like that, they go extra crazy. We had a surprisingly substantial percentage of the votes on the final night, like 50%.
| | | Album Rating: 2.0
" He would have got a record deal either way from someone." You're probably right, but I'm not so sure... Read my final paragraph where I practically state that. Even if he had made an album, it would have got about 10% of the attention this will get.
Thanks Trey. Was starting to doubt myself slightly there for a second. Thought I was missing something.
Thanks for the info PietroCrespi. And I don't at all doubt that it could have been the deciding factor when it got down to the business end of the competition.
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great review Davey and I also disagree with someguest, your in-review comments about Allen undeservably winning the Idol over other, more talented artists were a good addition to the overall piece of writing.
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lambert should have won and gokey should have been runner-up.
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american idol is a boring show anyway
even the auditions are just the same old 'lol theyre terrible singers' cuts
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^ ya -- plus pretty much everyone associated with the show is aggravating as all hell.
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Ahh, the Idolers waste another feature slot. Nice job Davey, sums up AI general way of functioning nicely
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the summary makes it sound like Kanye West ruined your ice cream.
jk. cool review.
| | | Album Rating: 2.0
Thanks metalstyles.
"lambert should have won and gokey should have been runner-up." THIS... I mean, I'm unsure if a Gokey album would be much better, but he was more desrving from his Idol performances.
Crazyfool, it's my ambition to fill all 4 feature slots at one time with Idol & RockStar SuperNova contestants. Hmmm... Allen, Dilana, Lambert & Iraheta. I could do it now!!! ;-)
And Kanye West did ruin my ice-cream once. He interrupted me & by the time he finished his monologue, it had melted. Ba$tard.
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I mean, I'm unsure if a Gokey album would be much better, but he was more desrving from his Idol performances.
what i really liked was that he brought the swagger, and that made his performances more enjoyable especially when he was singing a la Michael Buble or someone similar.
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