Stripped - Christina Aguilera > Reviews > Stripped she is..

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Good
Value for Money

Advantages:	New adult sound, catchy, great videos
Disadvantages:	Man hating !   : P

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Dirrty! What a track. It was a bit of a sensation of course, after what we had come to expect of Christina Aguilera after her debut album, which consisted of fairly middle of the road, damn catchy pop songs. The first single (Dirrty) not only broke that mould, it went on to offend, shock and generally delight many music lovers. To use a cliche, she had grown up.

Below follows not a really detailed review on the album - there are several very very good ones on here already - but instead just some personal thoughts on the album, and her.

But has she really grown up? The second single, beautiful, is nothing new. Its simply a classic, catchy and well delivered ballad - perhaps a beautifull song, but nothing especially new.

Equally good tracks are 'Fighter', 'Cruz', 'Soar' and 'The Voice Within'. The intro and interludes(entitled Stripped) are also cool.

The album is the same. Its topsy turvy. One moment she's exploring her musical roots with latin soul searching, the next she is eagerly singing along to a pop tune. Then you hear her on an edgy RnB track followed almost immediatly by more pop. One moment she appears to be desperately exploring the edge to her music, the next she sinks back to the comforts of her past. And that..is exactly what makes this album so good.

Its a near perfect mix of Pop, RnB and Soul. In terms of artists it goes from Alanis Morrisette to Whitney Houston to Madonna, although never as far as them. It's infinitely listenable, extremely well produced and well packaged. A question mark hangs over her rapid image change, and to which market she now appeals. This is not for hardcore fans of any specific genre, more a blend between a few of them.

I've bought it. If you like any of the genres mentioned, you probably should too. I love it - despite some of the more anti-male lyrics. One of the best albums of last year! (2003).