B'Day Review

This is the first of six reviews of American pop titans. Coming soon are Paris, Fergie, Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera and Jessica Simpson. But first, to the Queen of R&B-sub-pop, Beyonce. 'B'Day' is the follow up to 2003's dissappointing 'Dangerously In Love'. 'B'Day' needed to be brilliant to justify Beyonce's hype and status in America. 'B'Day' was produced and put together in just two weeks. I can't help thinking that this is Ms Knowles anticipating making the excuse "sorry, it's not very good, but it's not bad for two weeks, eh?". Fortunately she needn't make excuses for this album, well, the first half at least.

First single 'Deja Vu' has been all over the place over the last month and is a duet with Jay-Z, with whom she's previously released her smash 'Crazy In Love' and '03 Bonnie & Clyde'. Jay-Z also makes an pops up on 'Upgrade U' which might be decent if it wasn't so smug and self-satisified. I always get the impression that Beyonce has some mental health problems that cause her to scream like a banshee mid-song, but as this album goes on to prove, these are her finest moments. In 'Deja Vu' she's possibly her most mental yet, with her insanity and infatuation growing as the song develops. She's moderately sedated in 'Get Me Bodied' which brings her sound closer to classic, sassy pop. Once again though, spazzy booty shaking dancing is required. 'Suga Mama' is awesome, containing brilliant lyrics carrying a very retro sub-jazz-pop sound that is similar to Christina's 'Ain't No Other Man', calling on horns and guitar lashes. 'Upgrade U' has an erratic beat that bounces around jovially with the occaissional whistle but all in all at this point Beyonce seems to have clamed down a bit...

It's all just the calm before the storm however as we meet 'Ring The Alarm', by far Beyonce's best work yet, and a total schizophrenci, paranoid, bunny-boiling mind-fuck. The record doesn't quite do justice to the live performances of this song. The same is true for 'Green Light' which, live, is a scream filled fun-fest to shake your booty to but on the record is really tame. Perhaps they exist purely to be performed.

Excluding 'Freakum Dress', the final chapter to Beyonce's trilogy of insanity, a total maneating fest, the second half of the album is a lame duck. 'Kitty Kat' is squished between 'Ring The Alarm' and 'Freakum Dress', perhaps as a kind of neutraliser, whatever it's purpose, it's submissive and tame. The album is finished with 'Irreplaceable' and 'Resentment', which is a Victoria Beckham cover, which are slow, languid R&B dross that really cancel out the brilliance of the earlier songs. The latter half of the album reeks of two weeks work. Infact, it doesn't sound like two hours was spent on 'Irreplaceable'.

I can't help but think that this album would be much better if Beyonce had laid off the Ritalin and continued her crazy spazziness to the end. Still, there are some very good songs on the album, even if there are some very bad ones. Having five duffers on a fifteen track album might be excusable, but to have five duffers on a ten track album smacks of lack of effort.


Best Songs: 'Deja Vu', 'Ring The Alarm', 'Freakum Dress'