Kelly Clarkson’s latest album, “Piece by Piece,” finds the pop rock singer playing with EDM and synthesizers, while exploring the same themes of self-empowerment and heartbreak present on 2011’s “Stronger.”
Because Clarkson recycles so many themes from her previous work, the new album contains too many unexciting, mid-tempo songs that fail to impress. However, the album manages to soar when Clarkson takes chances with electronic experimentation, allowing her to embellish her already powerful voice and create impressively unique arrangements.
“Heartbeat Song” opens the album with a catchy chorus and shifting rhythms and segues into the anthemic “Invincible” that finds Clarkson vocalizing over confident lyrics.
“Take You High” is easily the album’s best song, proving Clarkson was right to experiment with electronic music. She switches from an angelic soprano to a powerful belting voice that is chopped up electronically and set over an orchestra. Her lyrics are appropriately heavenly, as she sings, “Let me open your heart wide / When your angels fall out of the sky / I'll be the wings that make you fly.”
Unfortunately, the album cannot maintain the momentum of “Take Me High” or the opening tracks. The middle tracks suffer from dull, mid-tempo arrangements that sap away the earlier songs’ energy. Songs about struggling relationships and heartbreak, like the title track and “Tightrope,” lack passion and memorability. Whereas artists like Taylor Swift are experts in crafting song after song about love, the songs on “Piece by Piece” are missing clever lyrics and tend to sound too similar to one another. For example, take the song “Good Goes the Bye,” a breakup song with emotionally-devoid lyrics like, “Burn goes the drink / Down go the tears / Drip goes the sink / And I'm missing you like hell.”
The album has some saving graces throughout. John Legend duets on “Run Run Run,” a beautiful piano ballad that pairs the singers’ voices wonderfully. “Dance with Me” is a fittingly danceable track that incorporates some of Clarkson’s past pop-rock elements. It is worth checking out the deluxe edition of the album, which contains “Bad Reputation,” a track in which the artist mixes soulful vocal runs with a rocking horn section.
Kelly Clarkson’s new electronic influences are surprising, as she is known for her rock style and a powerful, unadorned voice that could be more suitable for country music than club bangers. The change in musical style could be an incredible career move if she continues to focus on her stellar voice and improve on the lackluster songwriting.
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