Carly Rae Jepsen

Type – Album Review

Artist – Carly Rae Jepsen

Title – Kiss

Who would have thought that the runner up of Canadian Idol 5-years ago would have had the biggest selling single of 2012, the odds were certainly against her. No one could have predicted the mammoth success of 'Call Me Maybe'. Follow up single, 'Good Time' with Owl City also made sure that Carly wouldn't be just another one-hit-wonder. However, recording two catchy pop tracks is one thing, but producing an entire album of them is something else entirely.

A quick scan of the album credits and some of pop music’s go-to hitmakers are nowhere to be found: there’s no Dr. Luke or Ryan Tedder, no Shellback or Benny Blanco. There are two co-write assists from Dallas Austin, a single track with Max Martin’s hands on it, and ... that’s it. Jepsen has opted to work with a very close circle of producers and songwriters, and she co-wrote every track on her album save three. Jepsen’s game of spot-the-influence continues even on the peppy opener “Tiny Little Bows”, which despite a charming bit of overproduction (string stabs and synth-squeals all quick-edited BT-style), still manages to carry a sugar-sweet melody and features—of all things—a slowed-down sample of Sam Cooke’s classic “Cupid” part-way through. Unlike JoJo’s pointless re-appropriation of Toto, this bit of sampling actually hems close to the intention of the song, and if this gets one tween closer to discovering who Sam Cooke is, all the better.

Standout track 'This Kiss' wouldn't be out of place on an Alphabeat album with its use of electronic synths and feel good euro pop vibe. 'This kiss is something I can't resist/ your lips are undeniable' - there is no refuting that it is one hell of a catchy tune.

'Beautiful', a duet with boss Justin Beiber. It sticks out a bit like a sore thumb amongst the poppy track listing, this folksy ballad about friendship feels out of place, however it is still a fantastic song.

On a songwriting level, ‘Kiss’ manages to avoid the single most common pitfall of most mainstream pop albums: an overabundance of ballads. Rather smartly, every single song (save the admittedly inveigling Bieber-assisted track “Beautiful”, which has the misfortune of sharing the exact same lyrical theme as One Direction’s tramped-up “Summer Night” rewrite “What Makes You Beautiful”) is either mid- or uptempo, meaning the album’s 42 minute runtime breezes by fairly quickly. The production is warm and inviting, although its default setting is “amiable synth-pop”—Jepsen doesn’t detour far from her new sound. For those wondering: no, there is no knock-‘em-dead classic on the same level of “Call Me Maybe” on here, but the songs featured here are by-and-large surprisingly strong. An Owl City album this is not (but more on him later).

 

Jepsen proves she has more talent than half of the stars out there, managing to not only sell virtually every word on the album but also managing to make it all sound off-the-cuff and effortless, ultimately creating a bubbly pop playground that is both catchy and endearing without having to turn base or crude to get there. At the moment, Carly Rae Jepsen is best known for a monstrous #1 worldwide smash. If she keeps putting out quality material like virtually all of Kiss, that thankfully will not be the only thing that defines her.

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-          Gillian_x3

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