Ke$ha Is A Party ‘Animal’ On Debut Album, But With A Few Surprises
Lilith Fair newbie Ke$ha is setting digital sales records with the monster hit that is “TiK ToK.” Is her time up after one big single? To our surprise, maybe not. Animal, the smirking singer’s debut LP, is out today, and, turns out, it’s easier to swallow than either the obnoxious promotional stunts she’s pulled in anticipation of its release or an early morning bottle of Jack. Hear the most intriguing tracks below. The LA Times‘ Pop & Hiss music blog bestows three stars (out of four) on Animal, arguing that Ke$ha and her pop scientist mentor Dr. Luke have fashioned her into a compelling Mae West-style character, “part juvenile delinquent, part wise-cracking dame,” and we have to agree. Animal‘s more playful songs come off as equally reckless sequels to “TiK ToK,” encouraging the average little girl out there to become a train-wreck who “throws up in the closet” and “dance[s] til your pants come off.” Not very deep, but also kind of surprising, considering she co-wrote many of the songs with her songwriter mother, Pebe Sebert.
“My mom and I are best friends, so it really comes naturally,” she tells MTV in a unusually tame interview in comparison to the pull-quote gift bags to which we’re accustomed. “She taught me how to write my first song. I can also be really honest with her. We’re like best friends and there are no really forbidden topics.” (Really? How about that “show me where your dicks at” line from her 3OH!3 collaboration “Blah Blah Blah“?)
“Blah” is still rumored to be her second single, but we can see the incredibly catchy, synth-pop “Kiss ‘N Tell” being this year’s “Hot ‘N Cold” in a heartbeat. (And it stands to reason — Idolator’s former editor Maura did note correctly that “TiK ToK” would be the “I Kissed A Girl” of the fall/winter.)
[wpaudio url=”//idolator.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/04-Kiss-n-Tell.mp3″ text=”Ke$ha – Kiss N Tell”]
In fact, it sounds sooo similar to the Katy Perry hit (ahem, also co-written by Dr. Luke) that Ke$ha may wind up being accused of ripping off someone other than Uffie. But most Ke$ha detractors who find her a one-trick, white-trash pony would do well to check in on her more personal tracks, particularly the lost-love ballad “Dancing with Tears in My Eyes,” which turns out not to be as eye-roll-inducing as the title suggests.
[wpaudio url=”//idolator.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/12-Dancing-With-Tears-In-My-Eyes.mp3″ text=”Ke$ha – Dancing With Tears In My Eyes”]
The girl is actually surprisingly convincing being sad and genuine as she is partying “at a rich dude’s house” (as she describes in, naturally, “Party at a Rich Dude’s House.”) But guess which personality sells more records—introspective thinker, or sex-fueled party girl? Exactly. So don’t expect Ke$ha to pack away the glitter or Auto-Tune anytime soon.
Check out the sassy singer performing “TiK ToK” on Ellen this morning. We’re guessing Animal is going to have a big week, no doubt helped by the $6.99 discount pricing at iTunes. (But if you have a daughter, you might want to keep Animal out of her hands til she’s old enough to get her own nose ring. Or until Kidz Bop covers “TiK ToK,” which should be any day now.)
