Ke$ha - 'Animal' (RCA) Released 01/02/2010

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There’s no escaping Kesha’s first single ‘Tik Tok’. It’s being played on heavy rotation at every single R’n’B radio station, in every mainstream club and, lest we forget, in every fourteen year old girl’s bedroom. She partly raps like a white girl and partly sings like Katy Perry on E stating words of wisdom like: “Wake up in the morning feeling like P. Diddy”. Now the girl’s got it all, right? The attitude, the catchiness, the looks? Well, admittedly the tunes on ‘Animal’ make you tap along and, with a beer or two, they certainly make you dance as well, but it’s the kind of dancing that you feel embarrassed for afterwards. You know like dancing to Chris Brown.

Kesha’s ‘Kiss and Tell’ is Right Said Fred in the form of a hot 22-year-old instead of two fat bald guys. The album opening stomper ‘Your Love Is My Drug’ first tastes like a shiny popsicle in the sun, but soon turns into a saccharine and rather sickening affair. ‘Your Love Is My Drug’ is a ‘serenade’ to some hot guy giving us insight into Kesha’s wonderful world including her thoughtful and profound stance on love. In Kesha’s universe it works bit like that: “Won't listen to any advice, mamma's telling me to think twice/But left to my own devices I'm addicted it’s a crisis! My friends think I've gone crazy, my judgment is getting kinda hazy/ My status is gonna be affected if I keep it up like a love sick crackhead.” Deep!

In today’s artificial pop-world I guess you have to give Kesha credit for at least writing all the songs herself. Trying to be Lady Gaga doesn’t quite work out for Kesha as she neither possesses the lyrical talent nor the artistic creativeness of our favourite freak-pop queen. Kesha has got an ear for enticing tunes and danceable radio-friendly beats, but unfortunately she is lacking vocal ability as well as lyricism to pull it all together properly, which is why we end up with songs called ‘Boots and Boys’ or ‘Party At A Rich Dude’s House’. Fantastic. 

Kesha’s potty mouth and questionable sense of humour are entertaining for the first three listens but her signature sound is a bit too Euro pop to actually stay hooked after this.