Miley Cyrus is like your annoying kid sister: She’s bratty; she jumps around; she demands attention; and she just won’t go away.
Cyrus’ career began in her father, former country star Billy Ray’s, shadow, but now, she’s bursting out on her own with her first album, appropriately titled Breakout.
Her first album as herself, that is.
Cyrus is no stranger to the recording studio, producing song after song as her alter ego (and claim to fame), Hannah Montana, the star of Disney’s hit television show. But with or without the blonde wig, Cyrus fails to impress on Breakout.
Despite what her Vanity Fair photographs may suggest, the pop/television star stands proudly at 15 years old with an album full of teen angst – just in a bubble gum, badly produced kind of way.
We get it, the album is meant for tweens. But even still, the lyrics are laughable at best and often seem too mature for someone so young.
Songs such as “The Driveway” depict a serious, but broken, relationship: “I thought maybe we were getting somewhere/ But we’re still nowhere at all/ I remember what it feels like/ To know love and have it taken away.”
Then, there are the lyrics, such as those in “7 Things.” The track reminds listeners Cyrus is not as old as she wants to be: “When you mean it/ I’ll believe it/ If you text it/ I’ll delete it.”
And the album attempts to hide what Cyrus lacks in lyrical appeal by adding synthesized beats – heavy on the guitar and dreams – that create an incredibly inconsistent album. Breakout jumps from pop ballads (“Bottom of the Ocean”) to sad attempts at screamo-rock music (“7 Things”) and even a terrible version of electronica (“Fly on the Wall”).
Cyrus’ sickeningly nasal vocals don’t help, either. Completely forced, Cyrus jumps from sounding like a prepubescent teenager in one song to a 35-year-old smoker in the next.
Also included in her repertoire is a cover of Cyndi Lauper’s “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” Clearly an attempt to modernize with a “fresh” voice, Cyrus and her producers fail again with a song that barely lives up to the classic.
“See You Again” is the one redeemer on the album as a ridiculously catchy song that, once heard, will always be stuck in your head. Though it is no better in quality or talent, it is the song radio listeners love to hate – but will probably secretly blast in the car when there’s no one around.
With this album – and probably because of her envelope-pushing image; have you seen those leaked MySpace photos? – it’s clear Cyrus is just another kid trying desperately to grow up. In spite of her name on the cover and her voice on the tracks, the album is but a cog in the unimpressive Disney tween star machine.
dnahn@umd.edu
RATING: 1 1/2 out of 5 stars
