 Kelly Clarkson
Stronger (RCA/19)
Released October 2011
Robert Ham
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Style: Radio-ready R&B/pop; compare to Pink, Jordin Sparks, Taylor Swift
Top tracks: "What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)," "The War Is Over," "Einstein"
Put on the album of any pop superstar, and you know what you're in for. With Clarkson, this means buffed and polished songs that interchange personal/spiritual empowerment with sheer desperation as the music jumps between Europop, rock, R&B, and country. On one song, she yearns to have "somebody show me that I'm not alone"; on another, she refuses to hold grudges by singing, "If I hate you, what does that do / So I breathe in and I count to 10 / I forgive you"; and on the title track, she insists that "whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger." The connecting thread is the strongest weapon in Clarkson's arsenal: her stunning singing. The many producers let her voice mostly run free of post-production razzle-dazzle. You can actually hear the slight cracks in her performance on certain songs, which let bits of light shine through this otherwise airtight collection.
Copyright © 2011 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.
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