Clarkson's Risky Move Pays Off
My December by Kelly Clarkson
Is Kelly Clarkson's My December worth your time or not? This is the question you must ask yourself after digesting the stories about the massive label drama the original American Idol allegedly endured while writing and recording her third album. Truth be told, December goes a long way towards establishing Kelly as an accomplished songwriter as opposed to a prefab pop tart. And while nothing included here is particularly uncommercial, the album's rockier edge and downcast lyrical motif will likely alienate some of the 6 million + people who purchased Kelly's Breakaway a couple years back.
Then again, over 15 million folks bought Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill and another 6 or 7 million picked up Evanescence's Fallen, the two albums that My December will undoubtedly be compared to. Without any real angry-female types in mainstream pop nowadays, Clarkson is obviously picking up the mantle that Pink toys with from time to time — although, as evidenced by lyrics like "I hope the ring you gave her turns her finger green", doing it with far less humor.
A good deal of the songs on this album strike a decent balance between melodic accessibility and grit. Don't Waste Your Time, Yeah and One Minute are all hooky singalongs that would fit perfectly onto pop radio in 2007, certainly more so than the Benatar-ish initial single Never Again, which suffers from a lack of discernible melody and hooks.
One thing Kelly definitely doesn't lack is vocal ability. More than anything, this album impressed me simply on account of Kelly's leather lungs. While initially, she was gunning for the Whitney/Mariah pop mantle, she's got serious rock-chick chops now, and she can nail the hell out of a ballad. The gentle pulse of Be Still unveils a sensual side of Kelly, while the ethereal strings, gradual buildup and restrained (for the most part) vocal of Sober gives the album it's best track. In a just world, it would be a huge hit.
My December is definitely a risky move for Kelly. The little girls who sang Because Of You and Walk Away into their hairbrushes are very likely going to be puzzled and turned off by Kelly's less accessible melodies and lyrics. However, My December makes a strong bid to present Kelly as an artist as opposed to a song stylist. It's not perfect (the overblown, tuneless Judas will NOT be entering my iTunes library) and it is somewhat derivative, but it is her most consistently enjoyable album so far. With that being the case, she deserves props for trusting her vision and not going the easy route by recording Since U Been Gone X 12.
