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Music News: Britney Spears - 'Femme Fatale'
ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 8/8/2006
Posts: 42,086
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Quote:
Femme Fatale isn’t Britney Spears‘ “comeback” album, it’s not likely to stand as her best album and it’s not a “game-changing” collection of tracks, set to once again reshape her image to better blend in with the shifting pop cultural tide. That being the case, Femme Fetale is exactly what it needs to be. Like many of her contemporaries, Spears’ new release is built around songs constructed by Dr. Luke and Max Martin. Unlike with many of the records that have recently been released by these female “luminaries” working with the hitmakers however, there is a noticeably lack of pretense amongst Femme Fatale‘s tracks that allow them to breathe. The album isn’t a writing team and production crew’s soundtrack to a young vocalist’s romantic rehabilitation and it’s not a bloated collection of pop basics repackaged with an edge and sold as the face of nü-feminism. Femme Fatale is an album about celebrating the night: music for and about the clubs and the intimate aftermath that follows.
The stadium-sized party anthem “Till the World Ends” and dubstep inspired “Hold It Against Me” each set an immediate standard for the energy level which continues throughout the album. Not unlike the release’s honest motivation, circumventing a potentially questionable back story to sell the record, Femme Fatale often spits in the face of contemporaries whose platforms are guided by pretentious claims of working without vocal enhancement while clearly leaning heavily on pitch shifting. The Ke$ha-penned “Till the World Ends” goes so far as to stagger vocal breaks to help build momentum through to the chorus, using the technique not to correct Spears’ voice, but to accentuate the fade leading into a momentous boom. The song was made to kill in the club and will no doubt continue to do so for years to come.
“Inside Out” teases Matrix-like digital static while vocally invoking a bit of Aaliyah and “I Wanna Go” blends a pulsating beat with an infectious whistling sample which could just as easily have been the basis for an ABBA hit some 30 years ago. “How I Roll” takes a relaxed pace in working bubbling (literally) production under a melody that at times sounds suspiciously similar to Rihanna’s “Disturbia” while adding a fading drawl to Spears’ sugary vocals (“Speakerrrrrrrrrrr”). The hard-snapping “(Drop Dead) Beautiful” settles into place as momentum begins to stall, L.A. rapper Sabi then stepping in for a few forgettable bars: “Got me kinda hot but I ain’t sweatin’ you/Stir me like a pot of vegetables.” It might be valid if one were to complain about Femme Fatale being a bit top top-heavy; the most energetic songs are front-loaded and electricity slowly fades away as the album progresses. Considering the imbalance of momentum however, Femme Fatale still carries on remarkably well throughout the entire release.
“Seal It With a Kiss” is as corny as track as the album has, but it maintains an upbeat rhythm which carries into “Big Fat Bass.” One’s appreciation of “BFB” will largely depend on how you feel about will.i.am, who wrote, produced and performed on the song. To me personally, at this point in time the man’s career is nothing but one giant ongoing karmic joke, his ever-increasingly popularity serving as some sort of reminder to talented (yet unknown and struggling) musicians everywhere of their apparent misdeeds committed in past lives. All things considered however, it’s likely as tolerable as a post-Fergie will.i.am track is going to get.
The revving electronics of “Trouble For Me” eventually wind into “Trip to Your Heart”; built on a base of classic house synth, the track utilizes tender vocals which are initially hard to stomach, though the gentle nature of the song goes a long ways in diluting their acidic concentration. “Gasoline” works unremarkable lyrics (“My heart only runs on supreme/So hot, give me your gasoline”) around the album’s final energetic track before a flute (!) floats into a thick bass punch in “Criminal.” The track continues as an acoustic guitar accompanies Spears while she moans, “Mama I’m in love with a criminal/And this type of love isn’t rational—it’s physical.” The unpredictable twist in pace and tone add a refreshing conclusion to the otherwise boisterous collection of songs.
Though lyrical depth and well-crafted production haven’t exactly been mainstays of Britney Spears’ lengthy musical career, her albums haven’t exactly been the most consistent pieces of modern pop music either. With Femme Fatale the former is clearly of little consideration—there is no claim made toward any real meaning to the music and, “Criminal” included, the vocals largely serve as simply another instrument: Spears’ purpose on the album is to sound good with the music that surrounds her. But it’s the music that surrounds her that sets Femme Fatale apart from many of the singer’s past recordings. Though not entirely consistent, it is steady in delivering track after musically relevant track of delightfully vibrant music which pleasantly complements Spears’ contributions. Once again, the album is exactly what it needed to be; which is simply to say that Femme Fatale might actually be worthy of its mighty hype.
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-Culturebully.com
http://www.culturebully.com/britney-...-fatale-review
Cute review 
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Member Since: 6/7/2005
Posts: 20,766
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Member Since: 3/30/2009
Posts: 79,408
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Quote:
Originally posted by Chemist
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Great review. 
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Member Since: 6/4/2010
Posts: 4,190
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Quote:
Originally posted by Alexz
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looks good. but nothing beats her look on elle with her kids. she looks soo good
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Member Since: 7/27/2004
Posts: 3,188
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Member Since: 1/18/2011
Posts: 343
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Trying to persuade my mum to buy me the premium fan edt. But the delivery cost is almost the same price as the edition itself 
Oh well, Britney's worth it.
But what do you get extra that's not with the deluxe?
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Member Since: 6/4/2010
Posts: 4,190
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Hold it against me mv
21,103,176
facebook likes
8,726,825
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Member Since: 3/3/2011
Posts: 4,231
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nice, steady youtube views 
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Member Since: 4/18/2008
Posts: 2,194
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Quote:
Originally posted by ToMmY
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Is that a new magazine cover?
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Member Since: 4/22/2009
Posts: 11,768
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Quote:
Originally posted by Jennifer
^You guys are so delusional.
This is not Jive's fault in any way, shape, or form. Do you really think Jive doesn't want Britney to promote?!?! They are a huge business, they want money, promotion will get them money. Don't be delusional.
This is Britney's choice. She obviously does not want to. & her team knows that and they are doing the best that they can with what they've got.
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Interesting 
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Member Since: 3/3/2011
Posts: 4,231
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listen, we are back on this promotion topic again. Britney has 2 children know. she needs to spend time, she's getting older, she's not the energetic teenager that we saw a decade ago. She cant have a full promo schedule. I mean, if you have children, i think your main concentration will be on them. i'm happy enough with the GMA performance.
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Member Since: 2/2/2009
Posts: 20,174
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Quote:
Originally posted by Radiance
listen, we are back on this promotion topic again. Britney has 2 children know. she needs to spend time, she's getting older, she's not the energetic teenager that we saw a decade ago. She cant have a full promo schedule. I mean, if you have children, i think your main concentration will be on them. i'm happy enough with the GMA performance.
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Kids-part is ok but girl...she's 29. Look what Madonna can do with 52. No shade, just want you to be realistic.
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ATRL Moderator
Member Since: 11/22/2010
Posts: 10,782
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I'm so over this damn promo topic. Britney will promo when she ****ing wants. Those of us who are fans will continue to buy her music and support her whether or not she *****s herself out in the media or not. It's a dead ass debate. It's deader than some of the lessor's careers.
I'm happy she's doing promotion. Who's to say her team doesn't have a big promo schedule set? People need to relax. Britney did minor US promo for her last album, it went to #1 and she still had sold out tours. Then the bitch took a nap in 2010 and STILL made loads of money. She's Britney. People can't do what she does. Let her be her and just do your job as a stan and quit doubting teh Q.
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Member Since: 11/4/2010
Posts: 694
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It's my 18th Birthday tomorrow!
Which means I can blast Brit as loud as I want to & there's not a damn thing anybody can do to stop me. 
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ATRL Moderator
Member Since: 11/22/2010
Posts: 10,782
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Quote:
Originally posted by RAWR!
It's my 18th Birthday tomorrow!
Which means I can blast Brit as loud as I want to & there's not a damn thing anybody can do to stop me. |
*I remember 18....*
I feel so old.... 
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Member Since: 2/2/2009
Posts: 20,174
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Shame on me...
To need release...
Uncontrollably...
289 plays...
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ATRL Moderator
Member Since: 11/22/2010
Posts: 10,782
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Quote:
Originally posted by Lily Gaga
Shame on me...
To need release...
Uncontrollably...
289 plays...
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Give Brit those plays bb. 
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Member Since: 2/2/2009
Posts: 20,174
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Quote:
Originally posted by RyanC
Give Brit those plays bb. |
Born this Way ---> 21 plays
Just to show how much I love this Song
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Banned
Member Since: 2/8/2006
Posts: 2,389
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Quote:
Originally posted by Lily Gaga
Born this Way ---> 21 plays
Just to show how much I love this Song |
That gif 
But yeah, BTW has only 4plays in my charts so i'm showing a lot of LOVE.. 
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Member Since: 1/17/2011
Posts: 6,037
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Umm, I don't know if you guys know it or anything...
But gimmebritney.com posted a "remix" of Rebecca Black's "Friday" feat. Britney Spears. I haven't heard it, I'm on my phone. Here's the link: http://bit.ly/fViut2
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