Britney Spears - Glory

Britney Spears
Glory
2016
Spotify

2013's Britney Jean was quite bad. No songs made a splash on radio, and besides her highly lucrative Las Vegas residency it looked like maybe the pop star would ride into the sunset. Nope. Let's get this out of the way Glory is probably Brintey's best album. She is mature, concise, and totally aware of what she can and cannot do. Britney is not going to go on vocal runs, or blow you away with a high note, that is not her thing. Her thing is insanely catchy hooks, danceable tracks and pure pop, all of those things are expertly done on Glory. The first single "Make Me..." featuring G-Eazy is an absolute anthem begging listeners to sing and dance along. This is a track that anyone in the young pop set could probably do, but Britney brings a power and confidence that only years and years of experience in the game can bring. She totally flips it on "Private Show" which takes on this almost barbershop quality and is damn near perfection until the clunky bridge where Britney channels some inner Gwen Stefani in her distorted breaking of the fourth wall. However it is important to go into this record with a certain cap on your expectations. Is this lyrically complex? No. Is it rich in it's musical development? Not really? But is it fun? Is it exciting? The answer is yes. So you have to leave some snobbery at the door, but if you do you are going to find a really slick record.

Where Glory suffers is in the ballads. "Just Luv Me" has a modern sound, but it's boring, long and never really goes anywhere. "Clumsy" with it's overt sexual overtones brings the record right back around to the celebration dance vibe giving us a full tilt Vegas Nightclub banger, but those breaks where you are forced to sit through Britney trying to really deliver a vocal performance simply don't work. The album also has almost zero personal moments. If you want to take a glance into Spears' soul this is not the record to do it, nor are any of her records. These things are made for mass appeal not personal connection, and she succeeds greatly in accomplishing that goal. "Do You wanna Come Over" channels her smash "Toxic" with the high paced acoustic guitar and tropical rhythms, its a bit dark, a little dirty, but a lot of fun. "Slumber Party" is perhaps the most egregious lyrical travesty on the album, with lines that are nothing short of cringe. Missing from the album is Britney's disappointing collaboration with Iggy Azela, which is a real benefit because that song seriously sucked. In the end this is a record of fun pop music and should be judged based on that, sure when she tries to get deep it is laughable, but when Britney puts her ears down and makes a banger, watch the fuck out.

8.0 out of 10