D’oh! They won’t let me embed this video anymore. So here’s a direct link to the song.
Roommate Joe just forwarded me a link to Kelly Clarkson’s new single, “My Life Would Suck Without You.”
As I did with “So What” a few months ago, I’m going to give it a stream-of-consciousness review. Except for a 30-second preview, I haven’t heard this song before, so everything you read below will be spontaneous and unedited. (I’ll correct grammar and spelling mistakes and go back to add time signatures.)
Here we go…
Pre-Listening Thoughts:
I really want this song to be good. As much I’ve tried, I just don’t like My December (Clarkson’s previous album), so I’m hoping hew new music can return her to Breakaway form. She’s got a great voice and a charming public persona, and with great material, she could resume being exactly what I need in a pop star.
0:03 – Okay, guitars. “Since U Been Gone”?
0:17 – Electric fuzz. Hip. Clearly building to big chorus.
0:45 – There it is! There’s the chorus! Pat Benatar is still my queen, so I welcome her influence!
1:09 – Ah… returning to quiet in the second verse. Classic. One of my favorite tropes in pop music.
1:26 – Is the sound quality on this YouTube clip really bad, or is the song supposed to sound like it’s coming through a tin can?
2:32 – I’d heard this track didn’t have a bridge, but I thought it would bother me more. It doesn’t. There’s more of an alt-pop vibe than I was expecting. And her vocals have a lot of overdubbing.
3:32 – Hm… That wasn’t terrible. Let’s listen again.
Second Listen
What is the alt-pop song this reminds me of? Is it British? Is it an old Garbage track?
Oh! Right! “My Life Would Suck Without You” makes me think of Shiny Toy Guns. The affectless, extended notes over an electronic wash is more in line with that group’s sound than with “Because of You.”
If this is the direction Kelly’s taking, then that’s cool with me. Vaguely electronic pop is much better than emo angst, which is what she was trying to rock on the last album.
It’s interesting that they kept the less-than-perfect note at 3:14. Even more than the production, it seems like an indication that Kelly’s still not interested in being a perfect pop diva. Maybe “My Life Would Suck With You” is the happy middle ground between arena ballads and grungy nightclub songs.
If that’s true, then this song is a decent step forward. Maybe the rest of the album (All I Ever Wanted) will showcase a Kelly Evolution that’s less alienating than the last one she tried.







2 responses so far ↓
1 Erin // Jan 13, 2009 at 9:13 pm
Fairly decent review of the song. I have to admit, while I didn’t like the last album, there were one or two songs that I was able to listen to a couple times. I thought this single was pretty good. It is already getting good reviews
so I have high hopes for the entire album to come out.
2 Amanda // Jan 14, 2009 at 10:08 am
What’s happening with the cover design? I thought everyone was wise to subliminal advertising now. Must be post-irony. Or something. I can’t decide if the photo disgusts me as a (pseudo) feminist or if it appeals to me in its LaChappelle-esque extravagance.
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