It has only been four months since the worldwide release of Selena Gomez’s “Good For You” — a sultry pop and R&B lead single for her third studio album “Revival.” Whereas “Good For You” promised ambiance and poetic sensuality, the rest of the album fails to meet these expectations.
For the most part, “Revival” is catchy and formulaic, but also lackluster and a little too forgettable. Perhaps this is due to the album’s electronic and synth-driven production, which creates a curious amalgamation reminiscent of past top twenties hits. Granted, the songs on “Revival” are curated by some of the greatest hit-making co-writers. But why do they, then, sound like subtle rip offs of Cashmere Cat, Lana Del Rey and Britney Spears?
This certainly is a change of direction for the 23-year-old singer and actress as evidenced by the album’s bold title. It is much more minimalistic, more seductive than her previous work and signals a growth in maturity for Gomez. She reveals her lyrical intentions for the album in the opening track “Revival,” where she preludes the song by stating, “I dive into the future / But I am blinded by the Sun / I’m reborn in every moment / So who knows what I’ll become.” This introduces the album’s themes of love, confidence, heartbreak and — of course — her feelings regarding Justin Bieber.
“Revival” may be perhaps the most sonically cohesive album that Gomez has made and is therefore a nice example of the pop singer’s evolution as an artist. Despite this, the album is immaculately curated to a fault, with a perfect pop formula that might as well be a recyclement of the same material for each track. The songs are almost appallingly homogenous — to the point where it seems that the album, in its entirety, is just one long song.
“Revival” is a glimpse of what Gomez might have achieved in this new effort, but ultimately falls short of expectations. As a whole, the album is too formulaic and polished to the extent that it lacks the originality and spirit that would make it memorable.
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