There is no sophomore slump here. Adele's second studio album is outstanding. She's been a part of this class of British female artists making noise on the American pop music scene(Leona Lewis, Kate Nash, Duffy, etc.), but with this release, Adele really separates herself from the pack. This artist's voice is larger than life. She belts out these heavy and heartfelt ballads, all while still maintaining a certain poise. It's brilliant and magnetic. "21" which I assume is named for her age when she finished it (succeeding 2008's "19"), has a certain familiar quality about it. It's not unoriginal, it just has a way of getting into your head and staying with you. Adele covers "Lovesong" by The Cure and perfectly captures the track's signature haunting, mellow style, but still manages to make it her own. For the most part, these are love songs and they're sad, but so beautifully tragic. The Grammy award winning singer experiments on this record a little more with some different and more invasive percussion on tracks like "Rolling In The Deep" and "Rumor Has It", but there still is plenty of the soft piano driven sound that won her praise from critics and fans on both sides of the Atlantic.

RedletterDaydream

Past Works:
19

Track:
One and Only

Sia Kate Isobelle Furler, an Australian thirty-something known simply as Sia, has started to become a little more popular in the US over the past few months and she owes it to her reinvented sound. "OnlySee" was her debut release in 1997. This and the next two albums are just very stoic and sort of depressing, in all honesty. After 2008's "Some People Have Real Problems", it was clear that the vocalist's solemn veneer was cracking and she was beginning to emerge with a more poppy and upbeat sound. "We Are Born" is the next step in that evolution and while it features a couple slower songs, almost the entire album is dance/pop music. There is a noteable sort of disco infused element on tracks like "You've Changed".This is an artist with an incredibly rich and soulful voice. This record really pays homage to her musical influnces that include Madonna and Cyndi Lauper.

RedletterDaydream

Past Works:
OnlySee
Healing Is Difficult
Colour The Small One
Some People Have Real Problems

Track:
Cloud

Considered a national treasure in her native Australia, the very beautiful Kylie Minogue has accomplished a great deal in her lifetime. After beating breast cancer, one may wonder why she persists so tirelessly. I think that is explained in the simplest of terms in the first sentence of the first track of her latest album: "Dance...it's all I want to do". After the more tame and slower tempo and sound on her last release, 2007's "X", Minogue returns to her eclectic disco inspired dance sound that blends a 70's/80's era sound with electro backbeats and intimately ornate and catchy lyrics. "Aphrodite" is relentless dance music. There are no slower tracks present on this work. There is no experimentation on this record either, it's classic Minogue. The soft delivery, at times whispering, has become one of this artist's signatures. Most dance music is about being loud and energetic, but Kylie's soft vocals add a certain sexiness to the work that is very appealing. Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, beauty and sexuality is an appropriate namesake for this highly enjoyable album.

RedletterDaydream

Past Works:
Kylie                                        Impossible Princess
Enjoy Yourself                          Light Years
Rhythm of Love                        Fever
Let's Get To It                          Body Language
Kylie Minogue (self-titled)        X

Track:
Everything is Beautiful

The dance/pop scene really has had its tone set by Lady Gaga and if immitation is the highest form of flattery, artists like Ke$ha are paying major homage. In Gaga fashion, the fellow poptart released a similiarly titled EP to go along with her studio album released at the beginning of last year. Ke$ha even goes as far as discussing eating boys both figuratively and literally which is a recurring theme in Lady Gaga's lyrics as well. This album, however exhibits a cool originality in the production and other lyrical content which does redeem it. There's a lot of talk of dirt, glitter, drinking, sex, and dancing. There is enough auto-tune on this record to make T-Pain vomit. There is a feisty and vibrant sound that has become this artist's signature. On the track "Grow A Pear", the LA born singer talks about a feminine man in her life. You can probably figure out the pun. It's pure dance/pop music in all its superficial splendor, but there is a cleverness to it, and this self proclaimed "walking good time" has yet to disappoint.

RedletterDaydream

Past Works:
Animal

Track:
We R Who We R

Shelly Fraley has taken a long time to put out her debut album and it's finally here in all its glory. Shelly has been in and out of the studio for a while and has finally pulled through and released her debut album. You might recognize her music from One Tree Hill or other T.V. Shows but she has never gotten the recognition she deserves. Every song is crafted differently; from  a slow love song to an up beat cutesy song she does it all and she perpetually out does herself. Yes, she goes mostly by the book for a solo female artist but she does it with such class that she puts big timers and small timers out of business. It frustrates me dearly how these auto-tune artist make one stupid song that's played all around the world and the song has no heart nor soul and it's at the top of the Billboard charts. On the other hand you have a woman with inconceivable talent and she will probably never be broadcast on the radio and her music videos will play at 4 AM on MTV2. Shelly Fraley has made a landmark album, everything on this work is arranged perfectly and each song is crafted individually with a precise matter of her talent. This makes each song unique. Remember the days you have off from work? You know how sometimes it's bright and sunny out and you roll down your window and just drive. It makes you feel good because you feel free and that is how Shelly Fraley's music makes you feel. When you listen to it that is the image and the feeling that's projected.

LoopedEyeless

Past Works:
Up Up & Away (EP)

Track:
Come On, Let Go

Graffiti6 is a band that has yet to really gain popularity in the United States, but they are well known in the UK and I suspect they are about to conquer the American music scene as well. The London duo have a unique sound that is somehow both retro and modern. The melodic and low fidelity vocals are comparable to that of Moby or Gnarls Barkley. Colours is sort of an appropriate title for the album, whereas the music could be accurately described as colorful, or eclectic...it's vibrant and has character. It's not all upbeat and happy, however. There are some slower tracks with dark melancholy themes. The instrumentals on this work are so ominous that you can't help but be engulfed by the tone that is set. This is the first full length album from this band, though they have been teasing fans with samplers and EP's that feature some tracks found on this record. The whole thing really is masterful. They manage to be serious, yet fun; refined, yet silly...and they do so in a manner that is enjoyable and not pretentious.

RedletterDaydream

Past Works:
N/A

Track:
Stare Into The Sun

The second release from the West Palm Beach quartet was originally meant to be a full length LP, however those plans changed in mid July. The 6 track EP has been met with mixed reviews, however there is a studio album set for release later this year. This album is the band's usual power-pop, dance music. Lead singer, Cassadee Pope wrote all the lyrics and they're fairly sharp. Most of the lyrics reflect a bitterness toward love and relationship, and a pretty clear disdain for one if not all boys. It is, however, an upbeat album. Every song is danceable, even the first single, "I Don't Wanna Dance". The music is all written by actual band members as well, in contrast to the first album. "Beneath It All" is also the band's first release since signing with Decaydance, the label started by Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz. Fans of the first album will undoubtedly enjoy this EP. They pick up where they left off with 2008's "Hold On Tight". It is brief and leaves you wanting more, but it will have to do for now.

RedletterDaydream

Past Works:
Hold On Tight

Track:
Wish You Were Here

Stop the presses. Acoustic icon, Joshua Radin has gone electric. Not just electric guitar, either...this latest release features electric drum beats as well. He's gone from Elliot Smith to Howie Day, as far as the primary sound. There are the standard slow and sentimental tracks we're used to from Radin, like the title track. It ultimately came down to evolution with this artist. Most acoustic artists for that matter, are eventually limited by the confines of just one instrument and style really. The new elements to Radin's sound are pleasant. There are times, however, when it sounds slightly awkward. His voice doesn't really have the range for these kinds of genre-spanning manuevers and it's prevalent on tracks like "Road to Ride On" and "Here We Go". These tracks sort of sound like they were done acoustic and then remixed for a dance compilation album. The lyrics are true to form, maintaining the heartfelt and simple beauty that's become his signature. Unfortunately, in his progress he's lost that vintage element that is so appealing. The album is average, but shows promise.

RedletterDaydream

Past Works:
We Were Here
Simple Times

Track:
We Are Only Getting Better

Duffy returns with her soulful voice and style in her second studio album. This album in contrast to the debut, "Rockferry", was produced mostly by an American production team, but the fidelity to her trademark sound has remained intact. "Well, Well, Well", the album's fourth track is creating a buzz. The Welsh singer collaborates with Philadelphia soul gurus, The Roots, It's a more up-tempo track. Most of the album, however, is the cool, piano, horn, and acoustic guitar driven sound listeners have come to love. The vocals are clear and resonating. Just about every song, with the exception of the aforementioned collaboration with The Roots, is drenched in that beautiful melancholy. Duffy's music is timeless and ornate, like a classic black and white film. Most of the tracks are love songs, but they are also about longing, regret, and the overwhelming power of new relationships. A brilliant sophomore effort, indeed...an appropriate follow-up.

RedletterDaydream

Past Works:
Rockferry

Track:
Endlessly (title track)

The band the critics love to hate, the boys from Boulder (CO) are back with their third studio album. "Streets Of Gold" is 14 tracks (16 on Deluxe Edition) of relentless, party themed, dirty pop music set to heavily synthesized beats with occasional guitar riffs. The evolution of this band from album to album suggests they are shedding their aggressive house music roots, and branching out into a more melodic pop sound that really suits them much better. They gain more fans with each album, as well as notoriety within the music industry. This album features cameos by pop juggernauts Ke$ha and Katy Perry. Tracks like 'R.I.P.' exhibit a more somber tone, lyrically atleast, but nothing cumbersome. If you're looking for an all around fun album about house parties, chasing girls, and general tomfoolery...this is pretty much it.

RedletterDaydream

Past Works:
3OH!3 (self-titled)
Want

Track:
House Party