samdavidowicz's Full Review: Katharine McPhee by Katharine McPhee
Part 1: a little background on this.
OK, where do I begin? First off, I must say that even though I’m young, I’m not that much into the current music “trends.” I would much rather listen to RUSH or Led Zeppelin then Justin Timberlake or the Black Eyed Peas.
This goes for the current “pop” scene. Most of the “singers” out there can’t really sing (except Christina Aguilera) and too many of these songs are nothing more than synthesizers and electronic drum beats.
Then it happened. It was April 2006 and the 5th season of American Idol was nearing completion. Someone at work told me, “If you like pretty brunettes you should check out Katharine McPhee.” I told him, “I’m not going to tune into that stupid show just to see a hot chick.” When I got home, I decided to look her up, and then download her songs from AI. First off, when I first heard her, the voice of hers instantly “clicked” with me. For some reason, with voices it’s no middle ground, it’s either it clicks with me, or it remind me of nails on a chalkboard (and when I tell people that, they asks me, “Why do you like RUSH then?” Hahaha). Next up is the fact that Katharine is AMAZINGLY gorgeous (And after all the current photoshoots, it’s very hard not to put her in anyone’s “top 10 most beautiful” list). How she needed to go on AI to get exposure is beyond me, but that’s irrelevant now.
Part 2: Not the same Kat on AI (so stop complaining people!).
Yes, she sang the old standards on AI so when it was revealed that her album would be pop, quite a few people were disappointed. People need to realize that Kat said herself this is what she wanted to make. Let’s say this: if she made an album with old-school ballads, it wouldn’t sell. She needs to save that for a 2nd or 3rd album. But for now, having a good pop CD with get her foot in the door sales-wise.
Part 3: the album itself.
So, I get home and pop this CD in. I know it’s not the same old Kat, so I was expecting something totally different. Now let’s get one thing out of the way here. Yes, there are a lot of electronics here, but that is par for the course with pop albums. Oh, and quit complaining about the album cover. There’s very little skin.
Now for the songs:
Love Story: An old-school pop song that you can dance to. My 2nd favorite of the album, actually.
Over it: The 1st single of the album. Pretty good song, except it’s being playing 100 thousand times over TV and radio so I rarely listen to it on the CD.
Open Toes: Every album has it’s “cheese,” and this is it. Who sings a song about shoes? I can see this song being played in dance clubs though, due to its beat.
Home: One of the slow songs that really shows off Kat’s voice. One of the best on the album.
Not Ur Girl: Good song and a good beat. And that’s it, not one that I would find myself playing.
Each Other: Another song that shows off Kat’s vocals. I like it.
Dangerous: Believe it or not, this is my favorite song off the album. Up-tempo with good vocals, though some of the lyrics are cheesy (just).
Ordinary World: Aother slow ballad, I like listening to this for the voice that is Kat.
Do what you do: Another one of those songs that would fit in a club. Not my thing, but worth an occasional listen.
Better off Alone: Another song that shows off her vocals, a good one.
Neglected: Good song, good vocals though some parts have Kat drowning in her background singers – another thing about pop music that I never was a fan of.
Everywhere I go: Good vocal song with a heavy bass beat, turn down your subwoofer on this one!
Part 4: A word about this and other review sites.
Now, one thing when you surf review sites like this or Amazon.com or Itunes. There are “kat haters” that will spam the sites with 1 star ratings in hopes to turn people away from buying her album. It’s one thing to say you like Kat but are disappointed with this album, it's another when people say things like this (among others):
1. “People just voted for her because she’s beautiful!”
2. “She can’t sing!” (Or a combination of this and the one above it)
3. “She should have never made the final 2!”
4. “She is a snooty twit!”
5. “What’s this?! Where’s my Somewhere Over The Rainbow 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5?!”
6. “This album sucks, it’s all electronic drum beats!”
These people who write these fake reviews are upset that Kat outlasted their favorite on AI. These people need to realize that the 5th season of AI is long over. As far as the 1st and 2nd comments, those are said not only by people who are upset that Kat outlasted their favorite but by bitter and jealous women who are simply angry that Kat is so beautiful and will probably never have even 2% of her beauty. For the 3rd comment, that was based on the fact that she had enough guts to stand up to the judges when they made an idiotic comment. For some reason, when Kat (or any female contestant) stands up to the judges they are snooty but when a guy does that same thing he is praised. You know what that’s called? Sexist. For the 5th comment, once again this album was the direction she wanted to take, and if she an album full of songs like that she wouldn’t sell. As for the 6th comment, it’s POP! I’m a classic rock fan, and even I know that!
Oh, and one more thing: Bonus points for the spammer if you go into his/her profile and see a glowing review of another Idol’s album.
Part 5: Conclusion
In short, I like this album. I would give it 3 1/3 stars but as I can’t I will settle for 4. If you were a Kat fan on AI, even if you don’t like pop, I would recommend giving it a spin. Who knows, it might grow on you!
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