Christina Aguilera is a voice of a generation, so I’m a little confused as to why she has gone down a path of self-destruction with her experimental eighth studio album ‘Liberation’. The confusing record hears her fusing together RNB with synths and soul and sadly it just doesn’t work. You know you’re in trouble when one of the strongest songs is the hit and miss lead single ‘Accelerate’ because sometimes you wanna vibe to it and sometimes you just wanna skip it. And that’s kind of the perfect way to explain this record because there are some okay songs but the rest are messy at best. The album opens with a beautiful orchestral instrumental which is super confusing because it has no flow with the rest of the record. It leads straight into the sonically chaotic ‘Maria’ which is a gritty RNB meets catholic inspired track which will leave you thinking “what have I started listening to”. It dramatically sees her start swinging on the angsty ‘Sick Of Sitting’ which hears her briefly returning to her roots for some ‘Fighter’ inspired vocal runs. She then experiments with reggae on the catchy and seductive ‘Right Moves’ which will instantly become a fan favourite. The rest of the album then sits in the mediocre ballad realm where tracks like ‘Twice’, ‘Like I Do’, ‘Masochist’ and ‘Pipe’ become ultimately skippable. Fall In Line’ featuring Demi Lovato should be a massive and empowering moment because both of these artists are powerhouse vocalists and with their track record their ballads have always been their strongest material. But when you put the two together the magic just doesn’t seem to be there. They’ve written this beautiful and empowering song about how its every womens right to decide on what they do with their body and to have a strong mind to follow their dreams. But where this song falls flat is the production. They are trying to over compensate and instead should just let it be a raw and intimate moment. However she does get it right on the vulnerable ‘Deliver’ which is the albums strongest track by far. The raw ballad will have you feeling so many kind of ways and reflects on her insecurities that sometimes sees her causing self sabotage. “Sometimes I don’t think I deserve you. So I say some fucked up shit just to hurt you. But you know I do it all ’cause I love you. So, baby, tell me I’m the one that deserves you”. This is a very special and honest track that restores my love for her. Because at the end of the day whilst this album isn’t great and is by far her weakest record yet, she is still an icon. She still has that instantly recognisable voice that will have your heart racing and immediately have your attention. I just wish it was more cohesive with it’s vision.
You can purchase a copy of Christina’s new album from Sanity now https://www.sanity.com.au/products/2373644/Liberation