I'll admit, i didn't pick this one up straight away, the disappointment of 'Try This' and as a comeback, 'Stupid Girls' didn't really bring nothing new to the table.

Ok, so, how to follow up your least commercially and critically successful album to date? Make an album with killer lyrics, great hooks and a voice to bring down the biggest arena's.

-General Synopsis-

What I liked about this CD is the genuine surprise - after Try This, i didn't have high hopes, but after 3 tracks i found myslef wanting to listen all the way through to the end. What's quite evident here to is P!nk's ability to start creating a decent lyric, or at least working with the right producers to cowrite with, and recreate her now signature sound.

For those of you new to P!nk's work, she started her career recording R&B, before challenging her LaFace labels exec LA Reid to go back to her rock roots (trivia time - P!nk AKA Alicia Beth Moore was first noticed singing a cover of 4 non blondes 'What's Up'). Her voice is versatile enough to sing bluesy type numbers (Funhouse - One Foot In) to great pop/rock anthems (M!ssundaztood - Just Like a Pill) and full on rock mammoths (Try This - Waiting for Love).

So back to the CD, the general tone of this is a pop/rock album with some decent ballads and great uptempo numbers. there is a couple of stinkers, which is why the 4 stars.

-Track by Track-

STUPID GIRLS -
A good opening number, but by no means her best work, once again the tongue in cheek lyrics about hypersexual girls who give it all up for not very much. a solo guitar plays it in and remains throughout, with a few synth noises thrown in for good measure. ***

WHO KNEW -
love the lyrics to this song, i don't know anyone who can;t relate to the words. P!nk mentioned that the lyrics were about friends who were there one day and gone the next, through drugs. A slow start builds up to a great ending chorus showcasing P!nk's vocal ability to show emotion through her stronger vocal range. The Max Martin influence is very clear here too.*****

LONG WAY TO HAPPY -
a personal favourite. complex delivery of lyrics jumping over a single piano chord in repetition, building into a presnet day power ballad. Sounds very similar in concept to 'Behind These Hazel Eyes' by Kelly Clarkson.*****

NOBODY KNOWS-
First ballad, piano led again, builds up really nicely into a great finish. ***

DEAR MR PRESIDENT -
P!nk's open letter to to USA President in 2006 , thought provoking lyrics, it's brutally honest and i love the delivery. it's kept very quiet and the Indigo Girls provide excellent back up/guitars (the crowd absolutely went wild when she sung the line ''And what kind of father might hate his own daughter if she were gay?'' =D) ****

I'M NOT DEAD-
A standard rock song from p!nk, pompous guitars, dark undertones, loud drums, and i love the chanting at the end. The change inbetween tempo of the verses and the choruses makes this a real grower. ****

CUZ I CAN-
This was the first song which leaked from this album, its a dirty pop song, with trademark tongue in cheek pink lyrics ("I could fit your whole house in my swimming pool'') and great catchy chant ''ice cream ice cream we all want ice cream''. I personally think this would have made a better first single than Stupid Girls, but hey. great for anyone whose like P!nk's previous singles. ****

LEAVE ME ALONE (I'M LONELY)

Arguably one of the best on the album. Lyrics about wanting to be left alone to truly love who your with, a la p!nk brutal honesty. amazing guitar riff to open on and repeated through the album.*****
''I love you so
Much more when you're not here
Watchin all the bad shows
Drinking all of my beer''

U & UR HAND-
The best song on this album. great percussion intro, with p!nk's ''uh uh uh ooh'' jumping right over the top. P!nk said the lyrics came from when a man made a move on her, she denied, and he said it looks like it's just him and his hand tonight - the uptempo song is definitley a welcome break from the more serious, personal songs, and gets everyone rocking along when performed live. better at high volume *****

RUNAWAY-
back to another personal song, remeniscent of 'Family Portrait' a couple of albums ago - the teen angst provides great raw emotion, and showcases p!nks rock vocals great (the voices stuck inside my head tell me to run before i'm dead) ****

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY-
i wish one did just that, its the worst song on the album by far - just guitars and a bit of a country backing with a terrible lyric. *
'' I said what kind of man makes cappuccino
We laughed, We laughed, We laughed''

I GOT MONEY NOW - this one sounds a lot closer to the R&B she was doing when she started - the lyrics are a bit hypocritcal and pointless IMO and the only thing i really like about it is the end vocal which she does well. **

CONVERSATIONS WITH MY 13 YEAR OLD SELF -
the last ballad of the album, again reflecting on her childhood ( a running theme now for Ms Moore) its a completely stripped down song with a great orchestral bridge. ****

FINGERS-
i love it, its filth. p!nk once again singing about masturbation (again another running theme for her) the thumping electro beats at the beginning suit the overall tone of the song, and to be honest, you feel exhausted listening to her by the end. ****

theres a couple of bonus songs, if u have an international edition. 'i have seen the rain' is a hidden track she performs with her once estranged father about being in 'nam , i don't particularly like it, but i like the history behind it. Centrefold is the over bonus, and its a bit of generic pop rock song, one which kelly clarkson or avril would also prob sing if p!nk hadnt.

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Overall, i'd recommend this album for anyone whose a fan of p!nk's other albums, especially her FUNHOUSE one. this is a huge step up from Try This, and there's some brilliant craftmanship lyricwise. I'm Not Dead is a welcome addition to anyones CD collection, and as you can buy it for a fiver in HMV there's no reason to not give it a try.

Download:
U & Ur Hand
Who Knew

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One that got away