LindsayBW's Full Review: Charmbracelet by Mariah Carey
Oh, Mariah. She was a beautiful blonde with a huge voice, producing fluffy pop albums, and eventually pretty much single-handedly creating mainstream R&B / pop. Those were the days when we knew Mariah for her huge voice and nice body. But, then of course, came Glitter. And now it's not a Mariah Carey review if you don't talk about her nervous break down and Glitter flop.
Well, consider this not a Mariah Carey review. Because the main thing is she got over it, and I didn't care that much anyway. I was just anxious if Mariah could ever match the pop masterpieces that Daydream and Music Box are.
The lead single from Charmbracelet is the ballad Through The Rain. I hate this song. I never liked it, for one moment. Her voice sounds awful. It is quite a stretch to be able to say Mariah Carey's voice sounds awful, but only in this song have I ever had the nerve to say it. Mariah uses a horrid breathy voice and a screaming voice and switches back and forth and inappropriate times.
But I didn't give up all hope in Mariah. Because Charmbracelet was getting good reviews and I, like most obsessive followers of the music industry, was just so damn curious.
The rest of the album isn't hardly as bad as the crappy lead single. I tried to hate Boy (I Need You) so badly. I mean, it sampled a song that I hated. But I couldn't. The lyrics are hardly understandable, but the song is still dang catchy. I can't get it out of my head. There are quite a few songs like this on Charmbracelet. You Got Me, even though featuring a stupid thing that sounds like a little kid, is remarkably catchy. The One is pretty much straightforward R&B. But it's still catchy, and fun to sing along to. You Had Your Chance and Lullaby are more laid back Mariah R&B tunes. My least favorite of these is Irresistable, which I just didn't catch onto very well.
But I have never been a fan of the R&B Mariah. See, there are basically two kinds of Mariah fans: R&B Mariah fans and ballad Mariah fans, and I am undoubtedly a member of the latter. I've always been a fan of her huge voice when she executes it properly. And that is why I love this album: Mariah gets back to what she does best, in my opinion, and that is belting out those lovely ballads. Yours is a rhythm influenced ballad in which, although breathy, Mariah sounds great. I Only Wanted is classic Mariah, with slick production and her voice sounding it's best on this album. Clown is sort of mid tempo, but it still sounds catchy enough for you to want to listen to it and jam. My Saving Grace is a great ballad that you'd almost expect to hear on Music Box, and that is a good thing. Although by the time you get to the song, some of them start to sound similar, Mariah still manages to make every song distinct. Sunflowers For Alfred Roy is a touching and personal song, in which Mariah sounds great. I'm a sucker for personal piano ballads, so I'm a fan of this song.
But the two best songs on the album are the most ballsy. I've heard the phrase "when it's not broke, don't fix it." So Mariah didn't reinvent her entire sound on this album, but she did take two big risks, and they are the almost jazzy Subtle Invitation and the absolutely balls to the wall cover of Def Leppard's Bringing On The Heartbreak. The former of these songs is so different from anything Mariah's done, you almost have to give it a second listen just to make sure you're not imagining things. It is a fun little tune that I love. But the latter is the one I love the most. I love Def Leppard's version, but Mariah pulls it off and it's the best. It's not so much that this song is a piece of art, but the fact that Mariah had the balls to do it gives me tons of respect for her.
With the exception of Through The Rain, I love every song on this album. It took a while though - most of it has to grow on you. But some of it stands out like a sore thumb - a sore thumb that's really fun to listen to. She found an equal balance of the old Emotions ballad-crunching Mariah and the trendy Butterfly Mariah. And that balance is one she pulls off so well you may just forget about Glitter.
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