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Written by Preston Jones, McClatchy-Tribune
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Monday, 25 June 2007 |
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 KELLY CLARKSON
"My December"
Sony BMG
3 stars (out of 5)
"I make plenty of mistakes," sings Kelly Clarkson near the end of her third album, "My December." "Yeah, I'm hard, and life with me is never easy."
Meant as a confession to a lover, those lines could just as easily describe the past few months of Clarkson's professional life.
In the turbulent world of major labels, artistic independence is hard-won, even for someone with a proven track record like Clarkson's (her previous album, 2004's "Breakaway," sold 11 million copies worldwide and earned two Grammys). The road leading up to "My December's" release on Tuesday has been, to put it kindly, a bumpy one, with ugly rumors swirling about its quality.
Now we know: "My December" isn't a wretched misfire.
It is also not a carbon copy of the megahit "Breakaway" — a fact that reportedly gave Clive Davis and Sony BMG pause in proceeding with the project.
Yet Clarkson insisted that "My December" is the album she wanted and needed to make. Taken as a whole, it's a blistering, unrelenting experience, punctuated by a few genuinely fun pop tracks. Echoes of other angry rock chicks (like Evanescence's Amy Lee) can clearly be heard in Clarkson's abrasive vocals, with most of the songs climaxing in torrents of rage. It's far afield from the relatively sedate "Since U Been Gone."
While Clarkson has been quoted as saying she has never truly loved anyone, "My December" belies that claim, seething as it does like a wounded lover sifting through the emotional wreckage of a difficult relationship.
From the searing "Hole" to the shattering "Irvine," Clarkson makes you feel her pain with every note. Although she clearly wanted to make this a heavier, edgier record, she might've taken a page from the Alanis Morissette playbook: Coat the fury in a pop candy shell so it goes down easier. It might not have made "My December" any less difficult emotionally, but a few well-chosen hooks might have made it easier to enjoy.
It's hard to tell what effect this rabidly anticipated disc will have on the Clarkson's career. The buildup has been nothing sort of astonishing, as the blogs, newspapers, magazines and TV shows have pounced on every fresh development.
To mangle Frank Sinatra: Mistakes, Clarkson may have made a few, but for better or worse, she's doing this one her way.
"My December" is a nakedly personal album, one that will stand as one of 2007's most riveting mainstream releases.
Download this: "Irvine"
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Preston Jones:
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