In the Zone is Britney's 4th studio album. It was released on November 12, 2003. Its music incorporates dance, house, trip hop and hip hop styles with instrumentation from guitars, drums, synthesizers, strings, and Middle Eastern musical instruments. Its themes range from love, dancing, empowerment. Contributions to the album's production came from a wide range of producers, including Bloodshy & Avant, R. Kelly, Trixster, Moby, Guy Sigsworth and The Matrix.
Four singles were released from the album: "Me Against the Music", "Toxic" and "Everytime" became worldwide hits, all peaking at #1 in Australia and Ireland and reaching top 5 positions worldwide. Spears also became the first female artist in Billboard's history to have four consecutive number-one albums. By its third week, In the Zone had already sold 1 million copies in the country.
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In the Zone received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who complimented its mix of different styles and Spears's songwriting, but criticized her vocals for being distant and processed. Commercially, In the Zone became an international success, debuting atop of the charts in France and the US, and peaking inside the top 10 in eleven countries. In the United States, she became the first female artist to have 4 consecutive number-one albums. In the Zone went on to become the eighth best selling album of 2003.The album and its music videos are largely seen by critics as the end of her transition from teen pop star to a more adult female artist. In 2009, Amy Schriefer of NPR listed In the Zone as one of The 50 Most Important Recordings of the Decade, calling it "a primer on the sound of pop in the '00s".
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The first song recorded for In the Zone was "Touch of My Hand", and Spears said it "really did provide a balance for the rest of the record. We just went from there." Following the recording sessions for "Everytime", Spears complimented Sigsworth, saying, "I just basically told him exactly how I wanted the song to sound. And he was so amazing because there's a lot of producers you tell them things and they don't get it. And you're like oh, that's not the right way. He got it just right. He was amazing."
Before the album was released, Spears's manager Larry Rudolph commented that it was important for Spears to continue moving away from a traditional pop sound, citing "I'm a Slave 4 U" and "Boys" from Britney as departures from her previous music. Barry Weiss, then-president of Jive Label Group, added, "She has achieved what she set out to achieve, which was to make a mature album that didn't sound like something she would have done three years while still making a commercial album that has hit singles. [...] It's the kind of record she should be doing right now, and it came down to her to make it."
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According to Billboard, In the Zone marks a musical departure for Spears. Instead of traditional pop, the album is darker and more dance-oriented. Spears talked about the overall sound of the album with Rolling Stone, saying, "I'd describe it as trance-y, kind of vibe record—something you could listen to that's no so song-structured [...] Of course I'm not doing '...Baby One More Time' and those massive hits anymore. I think this record is where I am at right now in my life".
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Jason Shawhan of About.com gave a positive review, saying that while the album's vibe is sexy, the result is a personal statement from Spears. He also added, "T[here]'s another thing about Spears' new record, as none of her previous albums ever managed to produce any kind of sustained emotional response than the pleasure that comes from a good pop record. I miss Max Martin, for sure, but it feels like Ms. S. has been paying attention to La Ciccone. To put it another way, this is Britney's True Blue." Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic said that the album "[is] all club-ready, but despite some hints of neo-electro and the Neptunes, it doesn't quite sound modern—it sounds like cuts from 1993 or Madonna's Bedtime Stories and Ray of Light. Production-wise, these tracks are not only accomplished but much more varied than any of her previous albums." Dorian Lynskey of The Guardian commented, "Unlike previous Britney albums, In the Zone has no filler and no shoddy cover versions, just 57 varieties of blue-chip hit-factory pop. There is southern hip-hop, deep house, Neptunes-style R&B, the ubiquitous Diwali beat and, most importantly, oodles of Madonna." Jason King of Vibe deemed it as "A supremely confident dance record that also illustrates Spears's development as a songwriter." "Toxic" won Spears her only Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording in 2005.
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In 2009, Amy Schriefer of NPR listed the album on The 50 Most Important Recording of the Decade list. Calling it "a primer on the sound of pop in the '00s", she deemed Spears as the ideal vehicle for a futuristic sound, since she was still trying to break away from her teen pop past. Schriefer praised "Toxic" and "Everytime", and also stated, "While the decade's history of celebrity obsession, paparazzi voyeurism and conflicted constructions of female sexuality and motherhood are written on Spears' body, the decade's history of impeccably crafted pop is written on her body of work."
I always wonder what route she would have taken artistically if she hadn't had her breakdown after this album. She had a lot of potential at that point.
