Allie X - COLLXTION I

Allie X
COLLXTION I
2015
Allie X - COLLXTION I

2015 has been a good year for pop stars trying to do pop music minus the corporate image and constraints on their creativity. Miley Cyrus, Melanie Martinez and now Allie X are a few of these young ladies that are branching out on their own and doing something different while still creating something that has wide appeal. Allie X has taken this idea and ran with it on COLLXTION I there are times like on "Catch" where the music is sugary sweet pop in the purest sense but then other tracks like "Sanctuary" push the envelope forward and attempt to do something different. It is that mixture that really connects with people. Instead of being ashamed that you are listening to pop music these artists give you enough creativity that you feel like you are listening to something that could not be on top 40 radio, even though it might be. "Bitch" actually sounds like the Melanie Martinez song "Soap" but it does not quite have the sophistication that that track does.

As her debut EP COLLXTION I shows some really great promise, but at times it feels like it is confused on exactly what it should be. The record does not balance that space between art and pop very gracefully and the times you are hearing pop music you are well aware, just as you are with the more artsy stuff. The thing that Allie X seems to be lacking is that real sense of knowing exactly what Her music means. She is trying to straddle a line and at times she does it very well (the ending of "Good" in paticular) but for the most part she aims high and just slightly misses. "Sanctuary" which seems to be the all out yell in the car anthem comes across as so contrived that it is hard to enjoy. The best part of COLLXTION I is the fact that it is just the start for Allie X. She clearly has talent and that ability to balance the art and the pop is only going to get better and better. Don't sleep.

6.5 out of 10