Artist: Britney Spears
Album: Blackout
Genre: Pop
Release Date: 10/30/2007
Label: Jive

Retro/Disco type feel. It's a real hit and miss album to me. Some tracks are surprisingly good while others tend to plunge drastically. From the credits it looks like she worked with alot of A-list producers and writers this time around. Not surprising are how weak the vocals are on this album. When has Britney Spears ever been a solid singer? My favorite picks are "Break the ice", "Hot as ice", "Perfect Lover" and "Why should I be sad". Overall I would give the album 3 out of 5 stars mainly due to the fact that she picked the right people to give her decent music.

  1. Gimme more: First single off the album and it's a pretty catchy dance track. Definitely something that will be played in all the clubs. I really have nothing to complain about on this song. The beat is good and the lyrics fit nicely with the song.

2. Piece of Me: Okay so we all know what has been going on in the life of Britney but did we really need to have a song that explains all this. Well apparently she thought so. Not the worst song ever yet whatever the hits are in the beat they can get pretty annoying. Of course we all know she isn't the greatest singer as well and clearly uses voice changers in this song. My favorite part about this track is when the beat gets a little interesting at the end, and then it's quickly over.

3. Radar: Very "Poppy" dance track and like alot of the others relies heavily on synthesizers. Not much substance to the song but the hook is catchy and the beat is mesmerizing.

4. Break the ice: One of the first tracks that stood out to me as being well done and appealing. I say second single, would definitely let people know that Britney brought it on this album. Love the beat boxing in the track! Just when you think you've heard the best the song has to offer, the beat changes and gets even more amazing. I hear Keri Hilson was one of the writers so I'm pretty sure either Timbabland or his protégé Danjahandz was the producer of the track.

5. Heaven on earth: Not feelin' this song at all. I am not a fan even slightly with Britney's singing on this song. She sings in a very breathy and irritating voice. The beat is just too all over the place for me. It's another up tempo track which seems to be theme overall.

6. Get naked (I got a plan): I heard her say Danja at the beginning of this track so I'm assuming he was the producer behind the beat. Sounds like it was trying to be a little bit Timblandish in the style of the song (check out "Scream" & "Miscommunication" on Timbalands Shock Value album). The track is just ok to me; it doesn't really leave that feeling in me that I wanted to replay the song because it was so awesome.

7. Freakshow: The beat is definitely the first thing that catches you on to this song. For that reason alone I like this track. The song is a little freaky like the title suggest. Reminds me kind of something Fergie might have done. She does a little bit of rapping if you want to call it that.

8. Toy Soldier: Because the beat changes in this song and not in a good way I am not a fan of this track. She states that she's not looking for a Toy Soldier but a boy that will take care of her and not just come on over. Ummm....yea.....enough said.

9. Hot as ice: First thing that stood out to me about this track is the line in the chorus "I'm cool as fire baby, hot as ice". Love that line. Catchy upbeat tempo, something you can rock to. Vocals are solid on the track but it's really everything going on behind the main vocals that keep me interested. I could potentially see a single from this one.

10. Oooh Oooh Baby: Yet again another up tempo kind of track. This is less focus on the synths and more on the singing. One of the few tracks that showcase her singing (which is nothing to brag about) and don't drown her out with heavy production. Pretty much a boring track though.

11. Perfect Lover: Talking about someone being her perfect lover and being able to fulfill all her needs (if you know what I'm talking about). The beat is really hot and catchy on this one. This almost didn't make my favorite list but when I heard the beat changes I couldn't help but to add it to the list.

12. Why should I be sad: From the title alone everyone should know what this song is talking about. Ofcourse it has to do with her marriage gone bad. To me this is probably the most meaningful and best song on the album hands down. Not to mention you have Pharrell on the beat which puts that final stamp of approval on this track. Definitely a song to keep on repeat!

Bonus Tracks

13.Get back: Back into the dance track swing of things, this one is actually pretty good. I'm loving the beat on this one, and eventhough the chorus is really repetative it works very well for the song and doesn't get annoying. The beat alone on this one makes the song. I don't even care what she was singing about really.

14. Everybody: Not diggin this song at all. I don't even feel like explaining why, it's just bad and should have never been done 


Aaron Fields is the Sales Marketing Coordinator for KSTW-TV in Seattle. All opinions expressed in this column are strictly his.