After owning the airwaves back in 2012 with “Call Me Maybe”, Carly Rae Jepsen, following on from the success of last album Kiss, has returned to unleash her latest collection upon the music world. Titled E•MO•TION and with the deluxe edition consisting of 15 songs, it’s also one of the largest new releases of 2015 – here’s a woman who has evidently been very busy indeed.
Opener and current chart smash “Run Away With Me” gets things off to a great start; after all, what’s not to love about a track that opens with a sax interlude and a bridge that begs to be sung along to?
Title track “E•MO•TION” comes next and against its predecessor, struggles to have the same impact, although that’s not to say it’s a bad little number, because it’s not. Instead, what it offers is a real 80’s vibe that many other artists she’s found herself up against in recent years have tended to shy away from, the only possible exemption being Taylor Swift and her 1989 release.
“I Really Like You” gets toes tapping again – here’s a girl who wants listeners to get up and dance – and although the lyrics are a bit simple and ‘young’, especially considering Jepsen is now 29, nevertheless, she’s delivered another track which will no doubt find itself unable to be pried from the minds and lips of those who check it out.
The first weak number of the collection comes via “Gimmie Love” – when compared to the tracks that have come before, it really lacks the beat, rhythm and energy with which Jepsen delivers her thoughts so well.
She stays away from the upbeat material a little while longer with the arrival of “All That”, which in itself might work well as first dance song, but aside from that, it’s not particularly memorable. Fortunately, things pick up again thanks to “Boy Problems”; however, the musicianship, again with a heavy focus on the 80’s style, makes her vocal sound slightly out of time, though things get better when the chorus kicks in.
After the little lull that the past few numbers brought, Jepsen hits her stride again with “Making The Most Of The Night”, which all but demands to be blasted from stereos everywhere, allowed to dominate clubs around the world or listened to with friends while taking a drive down a street-lit free-way, revelling in the joys of life – seriously, it’s that good.
“Your Type” is the kind of number that Taylor Swift would likely wish she’d written (maybe the two of them should hit the studio together, can you imagine the fun?!), while “Let’s Get Lost” is a catchy ballad, but doesn’t offer anything particularly exciting.
“LA Hallucinations” is, ironically, quite trippy thanks to the way it’s put together, as is “Warm Blood” which comes straight after. Those that like their music to make them feel a little psychedelic will lap them up, otherwise they may both find themselves being overlooked.
Thankfully, the pop tunes which Jepsen delivers so well return via “When I Need You”, which may yet find itself being sung at karaoke nights everywhere, before the electro-pop makes a rather welcome comeback too thanks to “Black Heart.”
The final two tracks, “I Didn’t Just Come Here To Dance”, but in particular “Favourite Colour” are some of the best the album has to offer, and the chorus of the latter, although not exactly about ‘girl power’, only needs a mass sing-along with friends to quite easily rectify that. As for Carly Rae Jepsen’s future, there’s no rectifying needed – on the back of this, she isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
E•MO•TION is available now on iTunes.
