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Special Event: atrlcritic | Ed Sheeran's new songs after the upgrade
Member Since: 4/22/2012
Posts: 33,490
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Hilary Duff - All About You: 5/10
Neither particularly good nor bad, this song has a nice melody and even shows some creativity using a banjo as the most prominent instrument. Hilary's vocals are nice and appropriate for the song, she sounds youthful and captures the carefree, fun vibe of the song very well. It could have been a decent summer tune, but with the uninspired, immature lyrics and group shouts popping up throughout the song, it just ends up sounding childish and quickly loses its charm. The chorus sounding like she is backed up by a kids' choir doesn't help much, either.
In summary, the instrumental is the best thing about this song as it is more interesting than the usual attempts at marrying pop and country, which I think would be a suitable direction for Hilary to go into. However, considering her age and life experience, I would hope for lyrics with a bit more substance, instead of something that's comparable to a teenager's diary entry at best.
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Member Since: 8/28/2012
Posts: 34,863
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Two weeks ago, I had no idea who FKA Twigs was. It was thanks to ATRL that I found out she's a new artist that just released her debut album. Looking at everyone's reactions for the album, it seemed like it was some type of unmatched masterpiece, which got me excited to hear it.
Unfortunately, the album didn't turn out as I expected it to be. Perhaps that might be because this is not my cup of tea when it comes to music. The record, from start to finish, is dull and uneventful. The songs' melodies put you to sleep, and although great, Twigs' voice doesn't help that matter.
On another note, whoever produced the album deserves a round of applause. The album is very well-produced and undeniably one of the best I've ever heard. The production on every single track is pure heaven. I'd take LP1 as an instrumental album without the vocals and listen to it on repeat any day.
Highlight/Favorite track:
Production (x1): 9
Melodies (x2): 1
Lyrics (x1): 5
4/10
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Member Since: 3/15/2013
Posts: 10,989
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Quote:
Originally posted by alexanderao
The Lowdown: Straight-up pop song is cheesy, formulaic, and predictable.
After the horrifying incident that was the release of Chasing The Sun, Hilary Duff releases her second song within the span of a month and it is All About You. This track commences with an innocent guitar and drum instrumental which isn't very memorable. The very short first verse consists of just 4 lines, and Hilary decides to share the spotlight with a lot of unnecessary backup singers. In fact, the backups are used for most of the song, which is again unnecessary and cheesy. A 10-second prechorus follows which removes the heavy-hitting drum beat and allows Duff to showcase her (overproduced) vocals. The chorus then kicks in and it is not bad. Though the placement of a banjo seems a rather conspicuous attempt to appear trendy, it doesn't ruin the chorus. The chorus is simple but it is solid pure pop. The second half of the song is pretty much identical to the first in its structure, but a super-cheesy 20 second bridge pops in near the end. The song ends with another repetition of the chorus.
Though All About You is fun, youthful, and innocent, that doesn't make it a good pop song. Just like Chasing The Sun, it is extremely formulaic and never deviates from its very simple structure. This further limits its already-scant replay value. One observation I had was that the verses should have contrasted more with the chorus. Except for the addition of a banjo, the instrumental during the chorus is the same as the instrumental during the verse. This sort of downplays the chorus. Also, All About You feels rushed, clocking in at just 2 minutes and 42 seconds. Maybe the reason it was so short is because it would become terribly boring if it was the length of a regular song.
Most of the song is quite unmemorable and when you start repeating unmemorable choruses and cheesy verses it's going to get boring.
That said, All About You is a step up from Chasing The Sun for Hilary Duff. She shows here that she is able to make passable, upbeat generic pop. Ultimately, however, even though it's not bad, it's certainly disposable.
Reviews:
Drake - 0 to 100 / The Catch Up (4.0)
La Roux - Trouble In Paradise (2.3)
Azealia Banks - Heavy Metal and Reflective (2.0)
Jessie J, Ariana Grande, & Nicki Minaj - Bang Bang (5.8)
Hilary Duff - Chasing The Sun (0.5)
Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga - Anything Goes (4.9)
Nicki Minaj - Anaconda (2.0)
Beyoncé f/Nicki Minaj - ***Flawless Remix (3.7)
Pixie Lott - Pixie Lott (6.0)
FKA Twigs - LP1 (1.7)
Hilary Duff - All About You (4.1)
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I like your reviews!
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,973
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Artist: FKA twigs
Album: LP1
I've been listening to this album for 2 weeks now and I still can't express how I feel about it without using superlatives. From the opening track (Preface) to the closing track (Kicks), you're just captivated by FKA's vocals, the minimal yet complex production and the relatable but not cheesy lyrics.
Judging by her maturity and ability to restrain herself, you would never guess that this is FKA's first album. LP1 tells a story of love that turns into a sexual experience. It even reminds me of veteran Alternative band The National and acclaimed Alternative "one man band" Gotye, which is the highest compliment I can give to any new act. FKA was able to marry a minimal and alternative sound with her own personality and soul and that made LP1 a universal album that could be enjoyed by many. She's definitely a fresh breath of air in the music landscape and one of the few acts that are taking music somewhere. Score: 10/10
PREVIOUS REVIEWS
Drake's O To 100/ The Catch Up
Beyoncé & Nicki Minaj's ***Flawless Remix
Nicki Minaj's Anaconda
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Member Since: 5/16/2012
Posts: 12,486
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"All About You" by Hilary Duff
Hilary Duff's newest single "All About You" was released rather quickly after the massively disappointing buzz single "Chasing the Sun". The only good thing about "Chasing the Sun" was its music video and even that was not all that great. In contrast to "Chasing the Sun", "All About Me" has stronger lyrics and better production. Also, Hilary's vocals do not sound as processed and robotic as before.
The track is more than likely inspired by Red era Taylor Swift, but I do get some Midnight Memories vibes here and there which makes sense considering Savan Kotecha, the producer, had some material produced by him on Midnight Memories.
"All About You" is not groundbreaking or innovative nor do I think that Hilary really adds anything to the song besides being there to sing it, but the song is fun and a huge step in the right direction for Hilary Duff.
Score: 6/10
Archive
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Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 27,248
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holyground: music in review
6.9
"good production, yet still in the same vein"
highlights
cause hey baby, baby you got me so, so good
hey baby, baby, I got it so, so bad
| All About You
Hilary Duff
I'm rather uninformed about this, but did Hilary release this because Chasing the Sun flopped or was that a legitimate buzz single? Anyway, previously I reviewed Chasing rather positively, while literally everyone else thrashed it to the pits of hell. But it seems like people are reacting to this better than they did after the disappointing comeback they say. Even though I like Chasing, this is still a step-up.
Hilary sounds more full of conviction this time round, compared to the laidback and lazy feel of Chasing the Sun. It's almost like she's saying that she's back for real now. Her stronger vocals are accompanied with some great pop production. Firstly, we have the banjos, which probably got everyone thinking if this was a Taylor Swift song. But it sounds great and creates a fresh spin. Then, we have a more R&B (I think, I don't know how do you describe it) pre-chorus, which breaks the sameness of the song and refreshes the song even more. And the chorus just goes full-on glossy pop.
Then again, the usual shortcomings of Hilary songs are here again. Lame lyrics, and seemingly child-like qualities of the song clash with the kind of person Hilary is today. She's 26 going onto 27 and is long over her heydays during her teenage years, yet her songs sound like they belong in that era. It's baffling to think that we've (ok I didn't) been waiting for this for 7 years.
But still, the song has a great production and she's a pop singer after all. The main point of pop songs is to bop. And I did bop. Job done and that's it, at least.
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previous reviews
archives
...
anything goes - tony bennett & lady gaga - 7.1
anaconda - nicki minaj - 5.9
***flawless (remix) [feat. nicki minaj] - beyoncé - 7.5
pixie lott - pixie lott - 6.5
lp1 - fka twigs - coming soon
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Member Since: 6/5/2010
Posts: 6,067
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Quote:
Originally posted by alexanderao
Though All About You is fun, youthful, and innocent, that doesn't make it a good pop song. Just like Chasing The Sun, it is extremely formulaic and never deviates from its very simple structure.
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Preach!
I love your reviews! Keep them coming!
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Member Since: 4/29/2012
Posts: 15,977
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Y'all need to stop bashing other people for having different opinions
Kudos to alex for posting your review even though it goes against most other reviews.
Sure the score is harsh but he justified it well enough so I dont see the big deal
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,973
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Quote:
Originally posted by Lucas32
Y'all need to stop bashing other people for having different opinions
Kudos to alex for posting your review even though it goes against most other reviews.
Sure the score is harsh but he justified it well enough so I dont see the big deal
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I agree and Alex is very passionate about music and has better taste than most ATRL users.
With that being said, I wouldn't review something just for the sake of writing a review or review something that I'm not familiar with. All the magazines have different reviewers for different genres. Even though I appreciate his opinion, he had no idea about what he was talking about. And he's not the only one, there are many reviews here by people who don't know what they're talking about. Same thing happened last week with the Flawless Remix, some wrote a review and gave it a low score even though they've never even heard the original version and their LastFm and Favorites artists didn't include one single R&B or HipHop artist.
Taste is subjective but reviews are meant to be as objective as possible and if you don't like the genre, you just can't be objective.
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Member Since: 4/29/2012
Posts: 15,977
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Quote:
Originally posted by Superpower
I agree and Alex is very passionate about music and has better taste than most ATRL users.
With that being said, I wouldn't review something just for the sake of writing a review or review something that I'm not familiar with. All the magazines have different reviewers for different genres. Even though I appreciate his opinion, he had no idea about what he was talking about. And he's not the only one, there are many reviews here by people who don't know what they're talking about. Same thing happened last week with the Flawless Remix, some wrote a review and gave it a low score even though they've never even heard the original version and their LastFm and Favorites artists didn't include one single R&B or HipHop artist.
Taste is subjective but reviews are meant to be as objective as possible and if you don't like the genre, you just can't be objective.
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I see your point but I think it is nearly impossible to be objective when it comes to music.
And I don't think you need to "know" a genre to post a review about an album.
He just posted how he felt about the album just like everyone should and does .
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Member Since: 1/4/2014
Posts: 3,513
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Hilary Duff - All About You
There are those artists that you simply outgrow, you grow up but sometimes the artist just doesn't. Say hello to Hilary Duff. While I might have bopped to "Come Clean" when I was 12 years old, there's no way I'd even consider buying her album now. I had hoped she would've matured as an artist but she just hanged on to this Disney-girl sound, which is a pity.
I've always questioned Hilary's "passion" for music, it seemed like she just kinda rolled into it but wasn't really dedicated to making music. After she got noticed for playing Lizzie McGuire, Disney smelled money and they made her into this manufactured pop girl, the first of many to follow actually. I never got the feeling that she wanted to make music because she loved it but more because she had to and her latest music endeavors have mostly proven that to me. You would think that she has grown as an artist or as a person but Hilary's making the exact same music as she was 10 years ago but just with little twists to make it fitting for the charts today.
"All About You" might be an improvement over "Chasing The Sun" but that doesn't mean it's a good song. The lyrics are boring and cheesy, her heavily altered vocals are annoying and the production is still bad. I guess the melody is cute but could easily have come from a recycled Taylor Swift song. There's no Hilary at all, she's doing what all the others are doing to get her paycheck. She is simply trying to create a fresh fan base amongst the new generation so she can have an income. Yet she will probably not even succeed at that as the song's replay value is about zero. If you're trying to make a generic pop song at least make it catchy, Hilary.
I like Hilary and her personality, she seems like a genuinely nice person, so I'll be mild on her. However she just loses herself in the business of it all, it looks like she's just trying to live of the image Disney once created for her. She should for once do what she actually wants to do and at least try to make good music, if that's even what she's after.
3/10
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Member Since: 8/17/2013
Posts: 20,654
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Quote:
Originally posted by Lucas32
Y 'all need to stop bashing other people for having different opinions
Kudos to alex for posting your review even though it goes against most other reviews.
Sure the score is harsh but he justified it well enough so I dont see the big deal
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Quote:
Originally posted by Superpower
I agree and Alex is very passionate about music and has better taste than most ATRL users.
With that being said, I wouldn't review something just for the sake of writing a review or review something that I'm not familiar with. All the magazines have different reviewers for different genres. Even though I appreciate his opinion, he had no idea about what he was talking about. And he's not the only one, there are many reviews here by people who don't know what they're talking about. Same thing happened last week with the Flawless Remix, some wrote a review and gave it a low score even though they've never even heard the original version and their LastFm and Favorites artists didn't include one single R&B or HipHop artist.
Taste is subjective but reviews are meant to be as objective as possible and if you don't like the genre, you just can't be objective.
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mess.
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Member Since: 8/28/2012
Posts: 34,863
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All About You
Hilary Duff
I was one of the few people here who gave Hilary's last effort "Chasing The Sun" a score above 5/10, as I really enjoyed the track, and it grew on me a lot since then. But if I was to review it again, my score would get bumped from 6.25 to 7.5 or close to 8. As a result of this, I had high hopes for this track after they announced that this is the "real lead single".
All About You is yet another safe, fun and harmless track from Hilary. Similar to Chasing The Sun, this track serves nothing new, groundbreaking, extraordinary or special. It's just your typical pop song. It's not a bad song, at all, but it's not "wow" either. The lyrics are extremely cheesy, as expected, and the production suits the song as it is. Also nothing special about it.
All in all, All About You is a cute fun bop, but at this point, it doesn't seem like the album is going to deliver anything different from the 2 tracks we got so far, but I'm hoping I'm wrong.
Highlight/Favorite parts:
Production (x1): 6.5
Melody (x2): 7.5
Lyrics (x1): 3
6.1/10
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Member Since: 7/22/2012
Posts: 2,141
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Quote:
Originally posted by WeFoundWill
mess.
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kiiiii
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,331
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Isn't AAY supposed to be done by now?
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Member Since: 9/21/2008
Posts: 4,262
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Quote:
Originally posted by Luminary
Hilary Duff - All About You
There are those artists that you simply outgrow, you grow up but sometimes the artist just doesn't. Say hello to Hilary Duff. While I might have bopped to "Come Clean" when I was 12 years old, there's no way I'd even consider buying her album now. I had hoped she would've matured as an artist but she just hanged on to this Disney-girl sound, which is a pity.
[FONT="Trebuchet MS" ]I've always questioned Hilary's "passion" for music, it seemed like she just kinda rolled into it but wasn't really dedicated to making music. After she got noticed for playing Lizzie McGuire, Disney smelled money and they made her into this manufactured pop girl, the first of many to follow actually. I never got the feeling that she wanted to make music because she loved it but more because she had to and her latest music endeavors have mostly proven that to me. You would think that she has grown as an artist or as a person but Hilary's making the exact same music as she was 10 years ago but just with little twists to make it fitting for the charts today.[/FONT]
"All About You" might be an improvement over "Chasing The Sun" but that doesn't mean it's a good song. The lyrics are boring and cheesy, her heavily altered vocals are annoying and the production is still bad. I guess the melody is cute but could easily have come from a recycled Taylor Swift song. There's no Hilary at all, she's doing what all the others are doing to get her paycheck. She is simply trying to create a fresh fan base amongst the new generation so she can have an income. Yet she will probably not even succeed at that as the song's replay value is about zero. If you're trying to make a generic pop song at least make it catchy, Hilary.
I like Hilary and her personality, she seems like a genuinely nice person, so I'll be mild on her. However she just loses herself in the business of it all, it looks like she's just trying to live of the image Disney once created for her. She should for once do what she actually wants to do and at least try to make good music, if that's even what she's after.
3/10
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Absolute MESS at this response, you obviously don't follow Hilary's music career well or if at all if you don't think she's coming from a genuine place. She's not doing it because she has too which is kind of ignorant to say in itself. she's doing it because she wants too.
In a recent interview she said herself "I didn't have to come back again, the great thing about it is I wanted too." She missed performing, writing and being on stage having that connection with her fans. I don't think you know what your saying to be honest. It's not like she just jumped back into it and said I want to sing again, the very early stages of beginning to start on the album happened in January 2012 with just getting her voice warmed up. Why would she take the time going to meetings and signing to a major label after 7 years. She wouldn't if she was just in it for the "business". Also even with that said, she's taken a lot of time away from her son to work on the album, and she said she only wants to do something she feels really passionate about if it's going to take time away from her son.
Honestly Hilary said it the best when she said this
Quote:
Originally posted by HilaryDuff
I’m a big believer that there’s room for everyone and everyone has their own personality and their own style, as long as you’re coming from a genuine place then you’re a genuine artist and there’s plenty of space for great music.
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,331
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Quote:
Originally posted by Duffaholic
Absolute MESS at this response, you obviously don't follow Hilary's music career well or if at all if you don't think she's coming from a genuine place. She's not doing it because she has too which is kind of ignorant to say in itself. she's doing it because she wants too.
In a recent interview she said herself "I didn't have to come back again, the great thing about it is I wanted too." She missed performing, writing and being on stage having that connection with her fans. I don't think you know what your saying to be honest. It's not like she just jumped back into it and said I want to sing again, the very early stages of beginning to start on the album happened in January 2012 with just getting her voice warmed up. Why would she take the time going to meetings and signing to a major label after 7 years. She wouldn't if she was just in it for the "business". Also even with that said, she's taken a lot of time away from her son to work on the album, and she said she only wants to do something she feels really passionate about if it's going to take time away from her son.
Honestly Hilary said it the best when she said this
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Chill
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 8,995
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Hilary Duff - "All About You"
8/10
While I was disappointed with "Chasing the Sun", I can say I am much more satisfied with this track. When i hit play for the first time the backing vocals reminded me of "Sippin' On Sunshine" by Avril Lavigne which isn't a bad thing. The only thing that bothers me about this song is the semi-cliche lyrics and length. I don't like that the song is the exact same length as "Chasing the Sun". Overall this is an awesome song and should have been first as it is a laid back end-of-the-summer anthem.
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Banned
Member Since: 4/13/2011
Posts: 18,738
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these reviews are creating a whole new kind of pressed.
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Member Since: 3/8/2014
Posts: 1,024
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Quote:
Originally posted by Lil Misty
That review let me counteract with my 10!
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love you
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