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Avril
Lavigne
Let Go
label: arista
released: 06.04.02
our score: 3.5 out of 5.0
buy
it: here
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It's easy
to immediately dismiss Avril Lavigne as yet another flash-in-the-pan
pop/rock princess designed by the labels to help rake in the neverending
supply of cash generated by that musical whore, MTV's Total Request
Live (TRL). Fortunately for those who don't subscribe simply to
what is deemed popular by those in power, Avril Lavigne's Let
Go shows some definite promise (and is actually quite catching
to boot).
Don't be
fooled, however. This is by all means a calculated morsel of pop
perfectionism. It's all there; the catchy hooks, the "can't get
it out of your head" choruses, and (of course) the image. The
days of being a beauty queen, song-and-dance Britney Spears remake
have been fading fast. Not caring is the new cool - and Lavigne
has this down pat. A skater-girl rocker with just enough sensitivity
to be real but just enough sass to make her dangerous, she's a
record label's dream.
Especially
since she's actually a talented artist.
The majority
of Let Go features your basic pop-rock confection: guitar
laden rock tracks which would have fallen under the "alternative"
category back in the early 90s and have since become part of the
pop-music world. Still, Lavigne manages to do her part right for
the most part. She's a fairly proficient guitarist (especially
since she's just 17 now - just wait until she's in her 20's!)
and her vocals are extraordinarily strong. At times sounding like
the vocal meanderings of Alanis Morissette meets the guitar-pop
sensibility of Michelle Branch, she still manages to retain an
identity all her own.
Where the
album does falter is at the songwriting level. At time she'll
stumble, like "We rock each other's world!" in "Sk8r Boi." But
honestly, she's singing to her age group, and it's something to
be commended more than anything. Like any teenager, she's bound
to say some things that just don't work (whether in a song or
just in life). The honesty and reality of her songs will undoubtedly
win her a steady fanbase. It's a safe bet to say this isn't the
last we'll here of Avril.
Above all,
Lavigne is easy to associate with - we all know what it's like
to deal with people not being who they are. Let Go focuses
on this idea a lot. She's the kind of girl you can look back to
your high school years and know she was that kind of naughty
girl you secretly wanted but never had the balls to talk to.
She'll get
the boys looking, and get the girls listening - but she's no Britney
Spears. Instead she's just what pop music has been missing.
28-May-2002 5:35 PM
If you
liked Anything But Ordinary...
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