Britney Spears: Femme Fatale

With only a week remaining until the reigning Princess of Pop, Britney Spears, drops her seventh studio album, you can already hear the music industry's most well-oiled machines greasing up to embark on the next era in the entertainer's career. It doesn't seem long ago that those keyboard power chords of "Baby One More Time" first impacted our stereo. Yet with so much personal turmoil and public scrutiny it's hard to remember some of the professional highlights from the seasoned star, who's closing in on 20 years in the industry.

One thing that is not hard to forget however, is the formula. Each of the last six Spears albums delivered a slightly different sound from the one before, always setting the bar for where radio play was trending. Along with compilations of radio-ready tracks came a heaping amount of tabloid fodder, which seemed to play out wonderfully for her label and handlers who celebrated the success of her early career. Then in 2007, the world watched as the, once girl-next door, empire crumbled and a slew of public breakdowns, failed marriages, court dramas, and a still unclear to the public psychotic break landed her in the hospital placed on psychiatric hold and under a court-ordered conservatorship. While it seemed like the worst time for the pop star to return the to music scene, she did. And it was, if you judge the project based solely on the disastrous MTV Video Music Awards performance that will go down in pop music history or the embarrassingly under-produced video for the album's lead single "Gimme More". However, if you strip away the promotional elements of Blackout, the singers fifth full length record, and judge it based on the product alone, it's the most authentic and critically accepted album delivered to date. Rolling Stone called it "possibly the most influential pop album of the last five years."

Almost four years later, that background sets the stage. Early reviews of Femme Fatale have started to pour in and critics are comparing it less to her successful previous effort Circus and more to 2007's Blackout, which should be known that in parlance to Spears critics - that's a good thing. A club-thupping, fist-pumping (for those aware that we're living in the Jersey Shore era) compilation of EuroPop dance tracks that imitate perfectly where mainstream music is headed. The only thing setting this apart from her chart competition (Rihanna, Ke$ha, Katy Perry) is that it proves once again Britney does it best. While it lacks in content (sorry tabloids, there's no Taylor Swift-written breakup songs here to post on your covers), it over delivers in energy.

Executive produced by the Spears power-duo Max Martin and Dr. Luke, who have written and produced a slew of Britney's most memorable hits, this album will undoubtedly be the singers smartest and most relevant to date. While the comparisons to Blackout are obvious, it's clear the singer was more focused this time around. The tracks, which are led by heavy beats and memorable melodies, showcase a more authentic sound vocally rather than the over processed, almost unrecognizable, vocal performance heard on some of her previous efforts. Even in the midst of the heaviest beats, Britney emerges sounding more like the girl we first met, who delivered a sultry, and now infamous, "Oh baby, baby" like we'd never heard before.

The disc's first two singles, the clever "Hold It Against Me" and "Till The World Ends", consecutively debuted at number one making Spears the second artist in history, after Mariah Carey, to achieve that feat. And with more of that formula compiled on this compilation, this project could easily go five or six singles deep. The infectious "I Wanna Go" follows suit to the current singles, while the will.i.am produced "Big Fat Bass" offers a cleverly written hook ("I can be your trouble baby, you can be my bass") and an appearance from the The Black Eyed Peas star. "Drop Dead Beautiful" and the techno-inspired "How I Roll" are also highlights, but it's consistency that seems to be the star. The closest thing to a ballad is the mid-tempo final track, "Criminal" that is moody, edgy and still cleverly upbeat. Showcasing what Britney, or rather her songwriters and producers, does best is what makes this album worthy of high praise. Sticking to dance-floor jams that will keep fans engaged at a live show and delivering anthem-like hooks to keep people singing along in their cars is the key to Britney's success. Yes, I remember the successful "Everytime" that showcased a more tender Spears, but I contribute most of its success to the tabloid-fueled rumors that the track was about the singer's tumultuous breakup with Justin Timberlake.

If you're a true Britney fan you will definitely want to splurge on the Deluxe Version of Femme Fatale, as it includes four tracks that easily could have had a place on radio should they have been included in the package, but thematically it is clear why they were left off. "Don't Keep Me Waiting" includes an appearance by Travis Barker on drums and the Stargate produced "Selfish" is a club-banger sure to satisfy all of Britney's most loyal fans. If you are looking for that more tender Spears, the Rodney Jerkins produced "He About To Lose Me" is custom ordered just for you.

The bottom line is that this album is exactly what the doctor ordered - which might be more literal than I intend - for Britney. Fun, hooky, energetic and right on track to move her a step closer to reclaiming her career. To pre-order your copy of Femme Fatale, click here and don't forget to catch Spears when she takes over Good Morning America on March 29th, the day the album hits stores.

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Exclusive: Tragic Kingdom Presents

Happy St. Patrick's day! Today is a special day for Tragic Kingdom and not just because I have a special place in my heart for anything green.  As you know, I designed Tragic Kingdom with the intent to expose exceptional new talent and create a place to discuss the industry's biggest stars.

Our latest artist featured, Michael Shoup, was excited to take part in a new project, I'm calling Tragic Kingdom Presents, that joins our featured new talent with those more well-recognized, but still tragically adored. This week also marks the 25th anniversary for the SXSW Music & Media Conference in Austin, Texas.  As you might remember, it last year at that very festival where I first met Neon Trees, who went on to be one of 2010's biggest breakout acts and our pick for Best Album of 2010.  To celebrate, and to kick off a new exclusive segment on the site, I asked Michael to cover his choice of a Neon Trees song to feature this month.  Shoup picked the band's newest single "Your Surrender", which should start impacting radio any day (and the official music video should be making an appearance here very soon).  I am loving Shoup's take on the jam and am happy to bring it to you today.

If you're in Austin this week, enjoy one of music's greatest weekends!  And if you're not, grab a green beer, sit back, and "surrender" to Michael Shoup.  And don't forget to follow me (@CMVetrano) on Twitter.  I am picking 5 new followers at the end of the month to win Michael's entire album Learning How to Live absolutely FREE.

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Exclusive: Behind The Session with John Edwards

Tragic Kingdom recently had the opportunity to stop by a studio session with our latest featured songwriter, John Edwards, to preview a few of the newest songs in his catalog.  On February 16, Edwards along with Rich Redmond, Kurt Allison, and Tully Kennedy spent the day at Sound Stage Studios in Nashville laying down the tracks.  The songs, which included "Bad", "Our Summer of '69", "Stays In Vegas", and "Your Best Move", sounded great and with 'the boys' adding their hit-making spin, these soon-to-be classics should be burning up the airwaves in no time. Check out this video preview of the tracks, which also gives you a glimpse at what a day in the studio entails, and let John know what you think of the songs on his Facebook page.

And don't forget to "like" Tragic Kingdom on Facebook and follow me on Twitter.

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Artist To Watch: Michael Shoup

When it came time to pick Tragic Kingdom's featured artist for March it was a tough decision.  With my latest move to Nashville, country music has become so relevant (as you've clearly witnessed by the blog's recent country takeover), but I wanted to do something special this month.  I wanted to prove to the readers that Nashville is more than hillbilly rockers and twangy crooners. Despite the hicktown stereotypes, it wasn't hard to find a variety of talents spanning all genres, many of whom will be featured in the coming months.  When I first moved to town, I stopped by a writer's round at a local venue near my new Nashville digs that was featuring some talented local singer-songwriters.  It was there that I first discovered this month's featured artist.

Michael Shoup began sharing his gifts through music at a very early age.  Performing at his church in his hometown of Dayton, Ohio the young boy learned how to be comfortable on a stage.  By age 16 the singer was playing and performing in bars, where he developed a thick skin and learned how to interact with a crowd.  Now a seasoned performer, Shoup is known throughout Nashville for his pop-alternative sound that he delivers in a way that attracts indie fans, but with an artistic edge that have the makings of a superstar.  Ten years after his move to Nashville, Michael's greatest effort in the industry comes with the release of his debut record. He describes Learning How To Live as a "labor of love 25 years in the making". That shines through on the skillfully written tracks and with his unique ability to blend a variety of genres into one masterful compilation.

The album's eclectic sound is evident from the first track.  The standouts include the disc's opener,"Control", and an uptempo number that carries an inspirational theme; in its hooky chorus, Shoup sings "you can be anything, so what are you waiting for" on "Dying to Live".  "Salem" is the most country that this Nashville songbird gets on the record, but it hits the right notes, fitting-in perfectly with "Working Man" and the disc's most soulful track "NYC".  The sound of organs take center stage on the touching track "Let Go", while "Loralie" shows off Michael's clever songwriting capability and moves you in your seat.

As he leaps into the new year, Shoup is fully prepared for the success that is inevitably heading his way.  Self described as "one part Jackson Browne, one part Hall & Oates, two big scoops of everything [he] heard in the ‘90’s while ignoring [his] math homework, and a sprinkling of Sesame Street optimism", he looks forward to sharing his music with many more.  In the coming weeks Michael is launching a new Song of the Week feature on his growing blog that allows fans to give him topics that he'll turn into a hit record in one week's time.  You can visit MichaelShoup.com for more details and we'll be bringing you some really cool content from Michael later this month.  In the meantime, download a copy of Learning How to Live now on iTunes or follow me on Twitter (@CMVetrano) for a chance to win a free copy.

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