Lily Allen is striking “The Fear” into her pop competition worldwide. And it just so happens that “The Fear” is one of the first, and probably not the last, hit singles off Allen’s indulgent sophomore effort It’s Not Me, It’s You. The disk emanates pure feeling: hope, solace, hate, jealousy and ecstasy, enabling Allen to distance herself from the pop pack on relate-ability alone. She makes you feel as if she’s singing for you, and you only.
It’s Not Me, It’s You begins its story with delightfully witty commentary on our lives of excess, even poking fun at her recent stint as the British version of a pre-comeback Britney Spears. Allen knows just how to make you feel each stinging lyric, and makes you want to bite back right along with her. “Everyone’s At It” and “The Fear,” the first two tracks, showcase outrageous lines like “So you’ve got a prescription/ And that makes it legal?” and “I want loads of clothes/ And loads of diamonds/ I heard people die while they’re trying to find them.” These two songs will have you hitting play again and again.
The CD moves along, and so changes Allen from a line-thrusting bad girl to an emotionally charged woman. In “22,” she yearns to save a lost party girl before it’s too late, and you can feel her flying out of her cage in “I Could Say,” because now that the person holding her back is gone, “The whole wide world is my stage.” About halfway through the album are her hidden ballads, especially for those who buy the entire album.
The album also offers its share of guilty pleasures, among them angry anthems “Never Gonna Happen” and “F**K You.” They’re also the only tracks that have noticeably produced beats, and it’s here that production shines. Allen easily dismisses an ex in “Never Gonna Happen”, in which the title, well, sums it up.
“Chinese” offers her thoughts on a certain political figure. Allen’s candidness is the reason one can’t help but smirk while listening.
The disk ends with two introspective songs on love and some higher power above, tugging at heartstrings in the process. In “Him,” she asks, “Do you think he’s pleased, when he looks down on us?” and the listener cannot help but be moved by Allen’s soft voice and raw lyrics. “He Wasn’t There” chronicles the benefits of not giving up on love and proves that sometimes, someone really can be worth the wait.
What Lily Allen lacks in vocal range she more than makes up for in her impeccable delivery. Allen doesn’t stake her claim in belting out the notes or hiding behind a producer and background vocalist. She shines in her writing and her ability to make you feel just what she sings.
There is truth to her album title, It’s Not Me, It’s You, in that somewhere along the line listeners wonder if the album is really about themselves. Give it four stars, an A, 95/100, call it what you want; Allen’s sophomore album simply glows brighter than the rest of what is on the shelf.
4 stars out of 5.
