SONG OF THE DAY [#388]

'unusual you' | britney spears

so the new britney spears hits december 2nd. confession: i like britney. always have. sure, she's a complete disaster, but she's done some brilliant pop songs in her day. it seems like just yesterday that '...baby one more time' and 'oops...i did it again' were everywhere. was that really ten years ago? wow.

so i gave the new album, 'circus,' a couple of spins this week and i have to confess again: it ain't half bad. in fact, it's pretty darn good. for someone who's life has had more ups and downs than a game of whack-a-mole, it's amazing she's even managed to record a new album.

the song that struck me most first time through was this one, 'unusual you.' it's actually a really, really sad song and perfectly captures what it must be like to be britney spears. to wit: 'hey baby, you're so unusual. didn't anyone tell you you're supposed to break my heart? i expect you to. so why haven't you? maybe you're not even human 'cos only a angel could be so unusual. a sweet surprise i could get used to. unusual you.' man, that's just sad. but i also love it musically. most britney songs fall into one of two categories: syrupy ballad or hi-nrg dance floor stomper. 'unusual you,' on the other hand is a much more mature recording. surprisingly enough, it's mid-tempo track, neither aggressive, bombastic or sentimental, and appropriately subdued [and very under-produced for a britney song, and it's all the better for it. in fact, it reminded me of the stuff off mandy moore's excellent debut]. it's a fine example of when the music matches the sentiment. i haven't seen the liner notes yet, so i don't know who produced it, but hats off to you, mr./mrs. producer. nice job.

people can say what they want about britney, and i'll be the first to admit she hasn't done herself a lot of favors, but who among us, put in her situation, wouldn't have jumped on the turnip truck about five years ago? hats off to you, ms spears.

britney spears: unusual you
britney spears: out from under
travis: ...baby one more time [live acoustic]

7 shout outs:

Anonymous said...

hey matt good job with the comments.i came across ur blog from the twilight comment you made. i am a britney fan, no matter what happens, or what she does. that's the true test of a fan.

Brent said...

Matt, I have to agree...Britney is one of my guilty pleasures, and I'm a 32-year-old heterosexual man! Baby One More Time is an album I'd listen to in front of other people without feeling too embarrassed. Heh heh. Especially the song "I Was Born to Make You Happy". Love that one.

Thanks for posting this, my friend!

Aim said...

Well I'm surprised, I never would have thought that you would like Britney. Can't say that I do, I guess I have always avoided anybody that it in the new as much as she is.

Ryan and Shannan Hoffman said...

Wow, this was a total surprise. But I agree with you, she has a had a lot of catchy songs and I like her too. I am not a huge fan of her voice, but I do like her music.

megs said...

I've been waiting for you to admit this for years. hooray! :)

Anonymous said...

Just found out about your music blog! I love it, thanks for the aural treats. If I may, I'd like to share a tune with you.

Look up "It starts around Midnight" by The Airborne Toxic Event.

Maybe you've heard of it, maybe not.
Keep the blog tunes rollin'

Wayne D.

Kelly said...

Sorry I never called you back Wick. I will have to try and call you today later. You are wicked with your twenty pieces of a good pizza. ;)