Ke$ha - Cannibal, a review

Let's not beat around the bush - Ke$ha is not a serious artist. Whether or not she intends to be divides opinion: there're those who take her and embrace her for what she is, but there are those who'll continually attack her for her music. I until recently was of the latter category.

"Cannibal", the follow-up to 2009's "Animal" (technically 2010 courtesy of a January 1 release, but I think many were already well aware of her by then), comes at a time of peak popularity for Kesha Rose Sebert and you can almost visualise the board meetings demanding that she capitalise on this. "We R Who We R" was therefore announced to be a new single and released in late October - just 3 months after her last album's final single, 'Take it Off'. It's not exactly unfair to say there's been a bit of a rush to carry on.

But what of the music itself? The single is more of the same: very David Guetta, very synth-heavy electropop. But it's a sound that's more than tired in today's environment, and pales in comparison to her far superior back-catalogue (Tik Tok, Your Love Is My Drug, Blah Blah Blah). Not that that's stopped her: it soared straight to No#1 in the US.

The title track 'Cannibal' has attracted criticism for its controversial lyric "be too sweet and you'll be a goner, I'll pull a Jeffrey Dahmer". For those unaware, Dahmer was a notorious serial killer who also dabbled in necrophilia, rape and cannibalism. Well if that's an artistic direction, I'm Uri Geller. I have to agree with the countless critics here - it's pure shock tactics and it comes off as tasteless and vulgar, rather than satirical or clever. The song itself is more of the same: heavily autotuned, no progression, play-it-safe Ke$ha.

'Sleazy' follows and isn't exactly a return to innocence. The recurring lyric "rat-a-tat-tat on your dum-dum-drum, the beat's so phat gonna make me cum" does little to endear her to the aghast - but musically, it stands out. A heavy drum loop gives it swagger and enhances its sexuality in similar fashion to Gwen Stefani's 'Hollaback Girl'; cheekily and bizarrely. 'Blow' follows and with a heck of an accompanying synth, reaching out to the clubbers and dancers with an irresistable hook.



'The Harold Song' then breaks the mould being a ballad, proving that Ke$ha's vocals aren't entirely wasted without digital enhancement. I've made a number of comparisons between her and Katy Perry's music this year (attributing 'California Gurls' as a rip-off of 'Tik Tok') and I guess I should turn the tables. This is very 'Teenage Dream' - it's sweet, it's honest and a welcome soft side to an otherwise unruly party girl. That said, it's not particularly noticeable. 'Crazy Beautiful Life' has a somewhat refreshing lyrical theme of, uh, going out and getting drunk with friends. But hey, it's a theme she's nailed so far, and infectious beeps here and there give this a bit of charm.

It's just such a shame what follows. 'Grow A Pear' is about as witty as Jackass, with lyrics such as "I just won't date a dude with a vag" and "when you grow a pear, you can call me back". As if this weren't enough suffering, Ke$ha out of nowhere declares "and no, I don't want to see your mangina". This, coupled with the blatantly obvious repetition of Tik Tok/California Gurls' tune, make it an inexcusable error. 'C U Next Tuesday', it should figure, borrows a word-based pun older than her knickers.

All of these lyrical faux-pas (what IS the plural of faux-pas? Hmm.) are very easy to dismiss under the argument that she's just a popstar - but so was Britney Spears, and she at least had the decency not to go around subtley calling people cunts and referring to vaginas liberally. Some might call it ultimate feminism - an expression of sexual liberation - but from where I stand, there's a term for 'sexually liberal' people and that term is 'slut'.

But back to her music. 'C U Next Tuesday' lasts an eternity, never really going anywhere. And so we reach the final track, 'Animal (Billboard Remix)'. Which...is more of the same.

So to conclude. I made reference to the difficulty I have in assessing Ke$ha's music - is she serious, or is this just fun? Recent press comments regarding lead single "We R Who We R" swing me heavily to one side:

I was really affected... having been subject to very public hatred [myself]. I have absolutely no idea how these kids felt. What I'm going through is nothing compared to what they had to go through. Just know things do get better and you need to celebrate who you are.

The audacity to reach out to the emotionally vulnerable I think explains her popular appeal. She's by no means perfect and whilst that's applaudable given her successes and knack for a good pop tune, it's her (and many other artists') false advertising that irks me. Whilst I don't doubt she, or they (Lady GaGa is a repeat offender) are tolerant and all for equality, what has she really done to inspire those in need? Talk about vaginas.

Well done.

Rating: 4/10
Highlights: Blow, We R Who We R, The Harold Song, Beautiful Crazy Life
Avoid: Cannibal, C U Next Tuesday, Grow A Pear