‘Femme Fatale’ finds Britney at her best
It ain’t easy being a Britney Spears fan.
Since childhood I have anticipated the release of Britney albums with rabid and unparallelled enthusiasm, and it wasn’t until I went to college and met other gays that I realized I was far from alone. For many of us, every album that is released between Britney Spears albums is just that: a pacifier, something to tide us over until our girl grants us what we most desire, which is music we know we will love, memorize, play on repeat, dance to, cry to, and fall in love to.
In short, we want to know what our lives are going to sound like, and we wait, with varying degrees of patience, for Britney Spears to show us.
I’m a rational person, and I’m not a Britney “stan.” I have been maligned many times for being critical of Ms. Spears (especially in the years since her very public psychological breakdown) for her lethargy, the mismanagement of her persona, her lack of demonstrated desire to perform or promote or engage with her fans. I am ready and willing to look at Britney and her music with an honest and critical eye.
And that is exactly what I have done with her seventh studio album, Femme Fatale, which leaked in early March after a period of intense anticipation (after all, her last two albums leaked in full weeks before their expected release, as have recent works by Katy Perry, Robyn, Ke$ha and Rihanna in the past year alone). Lots of listens later, I can say with some confidence that the 12-track, non-deluxe Femme Fatale is a pop music tour-de-force, the likes of which we are unlikely see again until… well, Britney decides to release another album.
Executive producers Dr. Luke and Max Martin, the hit-makers who have collectively brought us roughly 40% of the hits of the past decade, lead Britney into sonic territory never before tread by a mainstream artist (much less the mainstream artist, if ever there was one). Not since 2007’s prolific Blackout have we seen Britney this gritty, this game, this adventurous in her sexuality and her vulnerability.
The album’s lead single, “Hold It Against Me”, is a certified club classic just a few months after its debut, with its ravey production and unforgettable dub-step breakdown. “Inside Out”, the closest Britney has come to balladry since 2005’s “Someday (I will Understand)” (which was produced by frequent collaborator Guy Sigsworth, notably absent from FF) is even more dub-step, but this time at mid-tempo and lasting the full length of the song. It’s perhaps the album’s most resonating track, with Britney lamenting the inevitable end of a relationship in ruin while trying (and failing) to resist the temptations of passionate breakup sex. “Hit me one more time it’s so amazing / How you shook my world and turned me upside down,” she says, calling back to the line that made her the star.
Though there is an undeniable darkness to the identity of Femme Fatale, the album features some lighthearted euro-disco fare that shows off Britney’s vocal idiosyncrasies. “I Wanna Go” is nothing short of a smash—a Martin penned melody against icy dance production by Shellback, it is Britney at her bounciest, with playful lyrics and walloping chorus. (Fans can safely expect to hear it on the radio, likely as the album’s final single, by mid-summer.) Britney keeps the fun going with the “Seal it With a Kiss”, another throwback synth-heavy stunner from Martin, and the whizzing electropop “How I Roll”, written and produced by Swedish duo Bloodshy & Avant, the masterminds behind Britney’s “Toxic” and “Radar”, among many others in her discography. (This team also contributed the album’s airiest track, “Trip To Your Heart”, which is so poppy it’s practically weightless—in the best possible way.)
But what fans love about Femme Fatale is its kinship with the pop icon’s best album before it, Blackout. Except for the fact that the star producer of that album, Nate “Danja” Hills, is no where to be found on Femme Fatale, there are many points of stylistic overlap. The thumping “(Drop Dead) Beautiful”, which features a short rap from rising L.A.-based artist Sabi, recalls the naughty repetition of “Get Naked (I Got A Plan)”; the Frasier T. Smith-produced “Trouble For Me”, which features some of Britney’s best vocal production ever, could have fit snugly on Blackout’s grimy back half, as could the incendiary “Gasoline” (and, for that matter, the Stargate-produced “Selfish”, which appears on the deluxe edition.) The only notable weak spot of the album is Britney’s much-anticipated collaboration with will.i.am, “Big Fat Bass”, which doesn’t ever quite find its legs. It delivers what its title promises, but ultimately features underwhelming instrumentation and cheaply distorted vocals that don’t quite jive with the rest of the album.
One of the more remarkable points of Femme Fatale is the closing track “Criminal”, which features an uncharacteristic flute melody over a mournful midtemo, in which Britney both laments and embraces her toxic love. Another Martin/Shelback number, it really kicks into gear during the bridge, which could have just as easily fit on somewhere on 2000’s Oops… I Did It Again or 2001’s Britney. As a lifelong fan, I found this one of the more emotional points of the album. It was a return to elemental Britney, the vulnerable girl-next-door who is at once confused and enthralled by her own sexuality. Maybe that is because, as a gay pre-teen, I was in the same place and was able to relate. Maybe it’s because it’s just really pretty music.
Though I have strong doubts about just how involved Britney was in the the creative origins of Femme Fatale (beyond reading lyrics off a piece of paper and vaguely hitting the notes which could be later manipulated by her army of producers), there is no denying that she remains on the very cutting edge of mainstream pop, that many have tried and failed to replicate her signature sound, and it is remarkable that in 2011—13 years after exloding onto the scene and being labeled a no-talent hack to be quickly enjoyed and forgotten—Britney Spears still effortlessly captures the collective imagination of a generation, commanding our attention and moving us (physically and emotionally) like few other artists can.
And though it still isn’t easy being a fan (not even I can justify her “dancing” in the “Hold It Against Me” video), when she puts out music this good, it’s a whole lot easier.
What do you think of Femme Fatale? Let us know in the comments below!
The problem I have with your review is mostly that you manage to put Robyn’s name in the same paragraph that you call any Britney album, much less this one, an unmatchable tour-de-force. Body Talk is easily one of the best and most original pop albums since Ray of Light!
Digressing, but not by much, I think you underexaggerate the fact that Britney (arguably?) has little to no hand in the creative process of her work, and 7 albums in she should be writing every song and be in complete control of her own image and production. It’s pathetic that that isn’t the case. I have a hard time hearing you discuss her lyrics with phrases like “Britney says” because, no, she doesn’t say. None of her lyrics are her voice or her concerns, really.
Also: when you say fans love this album, you do realize that only diehard Britney fanatics will have downloaded, listened to and reviewed a leaked album so, needless to say, that statement is kind of biased. I think you’ll find that, much like her songs that hit #1 for only ONE week, once the album comes out it’ll have one jump in sales, quickly slide down the charts, and will be blasted apart in reviews as a messy album with dated, sounds-like-the-DJ-club-mix version songs.
The sad truth is Britney piqued with Toxic, and the fake knee injury (to cover up what was surely her first mental breakdown) during the ONYX tour ruined her career. She will always have hype and her songs will do well for short spurts, but the only longevity to her career now is due to the MJ Factor of “you’re a crazy mess and we can’t wait to see how much crazier you can get.”
<3 u & <3 your site though
@Benutty
I have to agree with you on most of your points. Although I think there are some really good gems in there like Gasoline and Trouble For Me I can’t say that this is Britney’s best album, or the best work of her team, her writers, and her producers. Blackout is still number 1 for me in terms of Britney albums, and while listening to “Femme Fatale” I have trouble believing what she is singing. When I listen to Jessie J, Adele, or even Gaga for that matter I feel what they are singing because I know that they wrote it based on personal experiences or feelings, and are more than a robot sing-talking lyrics on a page someone put in front of them.
The only way Britney is going to pull this album into a TRUE winner for me is going to be with her performance of it. If I can see her feel the music and feel what she is singing about, she can make it work. And let’s be honest… the chances of that happening… I mean…. Well, Let’s just say that for now It will fall down a few slots in my playlist.
Well if her pre-recorded “live” performance in the Castro this weekend (which I’ll sadly miss) is an indicator of how or how not genuine the visual aspect of this album will be then I’d say she/her team is still up to their same old, same old. Although, admittedly, I think a performance in the Castro is probably the most brilliant decision of her career and I applaud my city for welcoming her!
To be honest, I was pretty bored by this album. I love Britney and have been a fan since MIDDLE SCHOOL, but this music was WAY over-hyped.
Let the lashings begin.
This album, where a few of you (friends included) my find that Britney is not in her finest form, is soley based off of production. Interviews with her have our pop-star telling her how hands on she is in the creative process, with her spilling the details on her own. Has she ever had a LARGE part in writing her own tunes? No – that’s been known since day one; unless your favorite song of hers includes ‘Everytime’, ‘MMM Papi’ or ‘My Baby’, I wouldn’t use that as an excuse. That being said – “Blackout” is solely her number one album, “Toxic” is her number one song and all with reason – the production. Her team of writers, producers and choreographers have all given us solid number one hits and, although, her hits off of “Blackout” were few and far between, it did give the gay community a giant template to base their pre-gaming and nights out on the town with. Am I wrong here?
I’m not sure, dear @Benutty, where your sources are on her “fake knee injury” as she suddenly cancelled a world tour and lost money in the process, I’m not sure that had mental breakdown written on it. If you have ever found yourself in a very injured state (ie: I broke my foot in college and found myself stuck in bed for a good month) you too would probably get a bit stir crazy or gain a few pounds. I think, if anything, that “Circus” was her “let’s fill the void” album. “Femme Fatale,” where it was leaked (true fans would have pre-ordered the Deluxe Version on Itunes), is giving us solid dubstep production and a different sound. Whether you want to say you prefer your girl singing live or not, I like my junk food pop all the same.
1) I love Robyn. I’ve been to three of her concerts in the past 8 months. I know every word and note of all the Body Talk EPs. But she is not in Britney’s league because she is not a mainstream artist. She remains electro-pop/euro-pop/dance-pop and just doesn’t chart high enough here in the US. As a talent, Robyn is in a class of her own, but when talking about relevant pop music in 2011, and considering Robyn and Britney both work with the same producers on very similar styles of music, Robyn and Britney are very much part of the same conversation.
2)I mention very clearly that I doubt how involved Britney is. She says she is very involved and there is no specific evidence to the contrary beyond the fact that she is not a listed songwriter or producer. (In fact the producers who have worked with her say she is quite involved, which may or may not be true, but no one has said otherwise). Not all pop stars have to write their own music to be credible. That is a lame argument. Sometimes the best ones are the ones that understand their limitations and are good at collaboration. I say “she says” because that is the fact – the words are coming from Britney’s mouth. Claiming they have to have come from her brain to be relevant or true to her is fundamentally misunderstanding the purpose of pop music, and how the industry works.
3) Where do I say “fans love the album”? I don’t. I say fans love her albums. Which is true. Her songs and albums top the charts, and even though her music doesn’t tend to have legs, it does help set new trends for other artists. Britney and her producers push the boundaries of what works on the radio. In a way, she is like “couture pop” – the most prolific artists in the field help create it, and you wouldn’t wear it every day, but it inspires things you WOULD wear every day.
4) The spectacle that was Britney’s personal life ended in 2008. Since then she has been positively boring from the paparazi’s POV. Though she is surely still as crazy as she was behind closed doors, her media appeal today is undeniable, and the attention she has gotten for Femme Fatale has been completely about her music, and how anticipated it is. She is still topping the charts, trending like crazy on Twitter, selling records worldwide, promoting, selling out 96 concerts without missing a single one (the quality of those concerts is irrelevant because it is subjective) and producing great music that her fans love. That is a relevant artist if ever there was one.
You seem to completely misunderstand Britney’s appeal and think that I and the rest of her fans don’t know what she is. We do, and we still love her because recognize that the only standard by which her critics are measuring her is one set by a younger, fitter, saner version of herself for today’s pop stars, who wouldn’t exist as they do had Britney not come before them.
Ultimately, I don’t give a shit if you like or respect Britney Spears. And true to her status as an icon, I don’t really think she does, either.
I love how 1 person (probably the only reader of this blog) makes a comment and then you attack them. Not to mention how hilarious it is that you argue amongst each other in the comments section of your irrelevant blog site.
You also might want to put down the thesaurus… do you sit there like a high-school student and replace every other word to make yourself sound intelligent?
Thanks for your feedback! FYI, though, my response wasn’t an “attack”, it was part of the discourse, and our commenting on each others’ posts (and responding to user comments) is a big part of what we do at OutSpokenNYC.
Also, I haven’t picked up a thesaurus in years. This post was written at about an 8th grade level.
I don’t feel attacked in any way shape or form. In fact, I get energized by this kind of discourse! Well, the discourse we were having prior to this.
First of all, I may have not clearly pointed out that I am, indeed, a fan of Britney. I am one of those who pre-ordered her album the second it was available and will still purchase it even if I may not like it. And, Tommy, I do understand Britney’s appeal, although I think we have a different interpretation of what her appeal is — I liken her to stars like Madonna and Michael Jackson, who, regardless of the quality of their music, are mainstays in pop music and pop culture. They sold a lot at the beginning of their careers and will probably always inspire INITIAL fervor when they have new music, but their music will never really be important again.
My concern is this idea that Britney’s music is still (if ever!) trendsetting or relevant. Tommy, you mention that her producers push the boundaries of what works on the radio, and if I’m reading that correctly and you’re saying her music is well-received on the radio then I think I have to disagree. The simple fact is that Britney has had only 4 Hot 100 #1s — the three most recent topped that chart for only 1 week, the week that they sold the most (due to hype) on iTunes. The other one only sat up there for two weeks and was her first single. It should also be mentioned that those last three #1s were the first singles off the album, and that they (subjectively) quickly slid out of the Top 10 and off the chart completely. Now, those things clue me into an idea that a) she isn’t being played on the radio for long periods of time, b) she isn’t as “mainstream” as we think she is, c) people only care about her first singles because they’re interested in seeing what her new sound is like, quickly become uninterested, and fail to care about anything else to come out of the same album. If we base “relevancy” off of radio play and sales and chart-topping, then no one is more relevant than Katy Perry, Ke$ha, Rihanna, Beyonce, and GaGa when it comes to pop music. Britney is not in their league when it comes to success. She’s beyond it. Like I said, her appeal is in the stratosphere of “people we will always care to hear from” (Madonna, Mariah, Michael…)
Seven albums in, I DO have a problem with an artist who puts out an album with not a single writing credit. Britney’s team, as evidenced by this discussion we fans are having, surely has an interest in making every effort to make it sound as though Britney “has a hand” in things because it has been what we all have questioned from the very beginning. We WANT her to have a say, so they want us to believe that it’s already the case. And it isn’t just the lack of songwriting that I have a problem with — it was very clear to everyone in “For the Record” that even during Circus, Britney was severely managed and had little to no control over her career. That’s really sad and I blame it all on her record company and her management. Recognizing your limits as an artist or not, Britney should have majority control over her own career at this point and I, frankly, don’t even see her having a minor share in it.
@Jon: There is absolutely not one grain of sourced fact in my assertion that her knee injury was a hoax. But as surely as Tommy believes Britney and her team when he they say she has a hand in things (with no other evidence in support, and none in direct contradiction), I question when, where, and how her meltdown began — I seem to think it started with that “injury” during a BOMB of a tour. Didn’t that tour get slayed by critics AND fans?
And FTR and in re: to Tommy’s “Where do I say fans love the album? I don’t.” — I pulled that from this, “But what fans love about Femme Fatale is its kinship with the pop icon’s best album before it, Blackout.” #justsayin
I for one think this is some of Britney’s strongest work. Sure she didn’t write anything…she never claimed to be a writer. Britney has some credits writing songs in the past…her best writing efforts were reflected on “Everytime”. For someone who has gone through so many troubling and unnerving times, Britney truly delivered beyond expectations on this album. I am anxious to see how her promotion goes in the upcoming week for this album release to see if she really is dedicated.
It is evident that Britney’s main focus is her children. I am still pleased as a die-hard fan that she is still giving us fans some incredible work while focusing mainly on her family.
When she is put to the test Britney delivers. I am addicted to this entire album more than I expected. One notable track not mentioned is “He’s about to lose me” which is included on the bonus tracks – simply incredible raw vocals. Flawless song.
Britney’s not back because she never left. 13 years and still as influential as the day she first started.
I know her album sales will not reflect great numbers due to the album leaking in full WEEKS before the release. People will talk about how low the numbers are but this shouldn’t reflect the impact this album will have.
I’m increasingly surprised by how much i love this album. In all honesty i can officially say “Britney’s back bitch!” The album has such a grasp on production but still remains to keep what Britney has always brought to the table.
At first i didn’t like the Track “Crimnal” but as i listened to it a few more times, it has quickly become one of my Top favorites. With the.. might i say “fairy tale” flute melody added into the -oh so Britney lyrics it displays her perfectly.
Sad how some members of the GLBT community are blinded by her use of OUT-GLBT hype. I agree with Tyler. Even with presales, the album isn’t at #1 and of her two best, both fell flat when Glee released theirs. TTWEs peaked at #9 on Billboard and is now at #23 after only 3 weeks. HIAM is already at #43. That’s Sophomore or Junior level performance for a Senior performer.
[...] Have you seen Tommy’s review of “Femme Fatale?” [...]
Cant wait to hear it!!! purposely have not even listened to Hold It Against Me Yet!
Basically, to back what Tommy said, your faves could never.