Ke$ha came out with her latest album, Warrior, yesterday and it is better than her first two albums (Animal and Cannibal) combined. I'm biased because, as you may know, I really adore Ke$ha's music, but this album is amazing.
"Warrior" is a great track to start the album, with that static coming in, then adding that piano before beginning the bass that is such a staple in Ke$ha's music. It also showcases her voice without autotune, which is something the entire album seems to emphasis; the fact that Ke$ha does have a good voice without help from the studio. The song ties together the sounds of her two previous albums and sets up a fantastic introduction for the rest of the album (it's those theatrics that make Ke$ha such a great artist and performer).
"Die Young" has been polluting radio stations everywhere for months, but it is a good song. We tend to forget how great a song is once you hear it one too many times. It has a great dance beat and easy lyrics that just make you happy, as most Ke$ha songs tend to do.
"C'mon" is a really fantastic song. I love it; a lot. Everything from that vocal track at the beginning to the bass that drops when Ke$ha begins to sing, and the continuation of that same vocal loop running through the song. It's a great weekend song and Ke$ha is the only person who can pull off a song like this; one that might not have the best lyrical meanings, but that has a great beat and sound that just allows her to pull it off and make it sound like something really special and great. It's amazing how she (Ke$ha) can do this so seamlessly.
"Thinking Of You" is a kind of great song. It's fantastic because the chorus and the title sound so sweet, as if Ke$ha is going to feature one of her more thoughtful songs (like "Animal" or "The Harold Song"), but then she begins that first verse (and every one after that) and it just becomes a better song that you thought it would be. It sounds like that classic Ke$ha from Animal, and I love it.
"Crazy Kids" is put together so perfectly; everything from that simple whistling at the beginning to Ke$ha's voice coming out clear, without any beats breaking up the vocals (for the first time on this album), makes this song great. The songs before this were great, but this sounds like the spot in the album where Ke$ha really hit her stride, and makes you excited for all the songs on the rest of the album. It's also infused that talk/rap sound that only Ke$ha can make sound okay and fills out the song perfectly.
"Wherever You Are" is one of those songs that shows just how great of a songwriter Ke$ha actually is. She can write something like "Thinking Of You" then turn around and give us a simple, slightly cheesy, and kind of great song that is infused with that signature Ke$ha bass which tries so ineffectively to beat out her vocals for the spotlight.
"Dirty Love" is just a fun song. Plus, it features Iggy Pop; you have to admit that the combination of Iggy Pop and Ke$ha is kind of great. The beginning verse (from Ke$ha) is so great; I can't not love Ke$ha when she says things like this. Iggy Pop chimes with a verse which matches Ke$ha's perfectly (plus, he makes fun of Santorum and that's always great) and the chorus is just put together greatly; a perfect mix of Ke$ha's dirty pop and Iggy Pop's rock.
"Wonderland" shows just how great and diverse of an artist Ke$ha truly is. The song actually makes me think that, in another life or when, maybe, one day when she has exhausted her pop career, Ke$ha could always fall back on a career in country. Drop the bass from her songs and make the lead instrument an acoustic guitar and most of her songs could work as country (especially Hunter Hayes and, now apparently, Kelly Clarkson are considered country). Aside from all this babble, this retrospective song is really great and makes me a little nostalgic.
"Only Wanna Dance With You" is the only song that could have followed "Wonderland," and it's great. It has those sickly sweet lyrics mixed with the lyrics which Ke$ha so easily lays out, creating great lines like "I'm talking about you in my sleep, what the hell did you do to me". Of course, the song has that back beat coursing through the track, making you want to dance just a little bit, and shows that Ke$ha has grown up and her sound has evolved since the last album.
"Supernatural" sounds reminiscent of the sound on Cannibal and, while it does have a great back beat, it does show that Ke$ha is totally capable of producing these slightly sweet songs which only she can manage to shove full of a sounds and beats that tear it away from that "nice" sound before the chorus is finished. It's pure Ke$ha and it's amazing how she is so adept at creating this mixture of sounds.
"All That Matters (The Beautiful Life)" has a great introduction and the lyrics make Ke$ha sound like she has grown a lot since her last two albums. Her songs are pulsing with more energy than her last two albums because, even though her other album's bass lines were strong and persistent, the beats on this album seem to have a pure upbeat energy that follows that bass line through the track.
"Love Into The Light" has the one of the simplest all electronic compositions I have heard from a Ke$ha song, but I love it. Listen to the simplicity of that back beat, combined with Ke$ha's soft voice and those honest lyrics; it's amazing. It only makes Ke$ha so much better than any of her past music; she has grown a lot and, as this album has progressed, the lyrics and compositions just keep getting better.
"Last Goodbye" is the best example I can find of why I love Ke$ha's music so much. This song is just... It's perfection; I love it. There is no better Ke$ha song and I am sure that it will not get all the credit it deserves, but the lyrics and the composition are so honestly pure and simple that it is perfection. Ke$ha, never change, because you are awesome.
"Gold Trans Am" is really the only song that could pick the album back up after the last track, and when she says "wam, bam, thank you ma'am," you know that you are already hooked on this song. It is that gritty, dirty, classic Ke$ha and it's amazing; she has not put out this gritty sound from her first album in a while and the fact that she's pulled it back in a few times on this album makes me respect her music all the more.
"Out Alive" is a fantastic song to begin the album's conclusion and shows, again, just how theatrical Ke$ha is (that she would have a song like this to close the album). The lyrics are great and Ke$ha is the only artist right now who is willing to state the fact that no one will make it out alive, pairing those lyrics with a great dance beat and turning it into the best song for anyone who wants to throw a party and pretend like the 21st will be the end of the world.
"Past Lives" is altogether fantastically amazing. There are no words to describe how much I love this song. It is such a wonderfully simple composition that continues to, slowly, layer upon itself as the song progresses, creating a complex sound that winds through the track, while still being a perfectly simple composition for each separate instrument. Whomever decided that adding that little bit of male vocal which chimes in perfectly with Ke$ha's vocals was a genius and, the sound combined with the amazing lyrics, make this the absolute best way that Ke$ha could have ended this album.
Ke$ha has grown up a lot since "Stephen" and "Party At A Rich Dude's House", and this album shows just how great she has become. Even as her music style and lyrics grow and evolve, Ke$ha still maintains this seemingly innate ability to be, purely, Ke$ha, with no other influences; she blends her thoughtful and fun lyrics, great guitar riffs, and that ever present bass line perfectly to create an amazing sound. Each track on this album is put together perfectly to create an amazing album and, if you have not done so already, buy Warrior so you can support Ke$ha and listen to one fantastic track after another.
- E
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