Ashlee Simpson - Bittersweet World Review

Posted by Daniel Wilcox on 04.23.2008

I'm not sure what drove me to pick this up, but now I'm kind of glad I did...

You know the relationship is in trouble when Ashlee Simpson appears to be the more talented of the couple…



Track listing:
1. Outta My Head (Ay Ya Ya)
2. Boys
3. Rule Breaker
4. No Time For Tears
5. Little Miss Obsessive
6. Ragdoll
7. Bittersweet World
8. What I’ve Become
9. Hot Stuff
10. Murder
11. Never Dream Alone

I don’t know if I’ll ever understand how this girl has already landed two No.1 albums but she must be doing something right. I guess in comparison to her sister, she is pretty talented and to me, has a much better image but that’s not really saying much, is it?

But that’s not to say that there’s not something enjoyable about Miss Simpson’s work. Thankfully, it never has taken itself too seriously and usually makes for a pretty decent pop record. Having said that, I just don’t see what sets her apart from the hoards of similar artists out there.

Bittersweet World is the follow-up to I Am Me and Simpson’s third full-length album in total. Before its release, I thought it had pretty good potential considering half of the tracks were produced by Timbaland, a man who’s touch seems to turn things to gold at the moment. The first two singles were also pretty promising, “Outta My Head (Ay Ya Ya)” in particular has been stuck in my head for days now, so much so that I used some free time this weekend to download the album, and here we are.

Simpson revealed last year that the record would be much less guitar-orientated than her previous efforts and that is pretty much true. It’s a lot more of a dance record than her first two albums and contains way more elements of techno. For the most part it seems to work well, but he few tracks that are still guitar driven still have a certain charm that other parts of the album lack. And there even seems to be some small vocal improvement too. Don’t get me wrong, it’s nothing worth getting worked up about but I’d certainly say that Simpson is a lot easier to listen to and surprisingly, I don’t find myself irritated by Beautiful World a few tracks in, a rarity for pop records.

So I’ve been pointed out a fair few good things about this disc already, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. There is absolutely nothing groundbreaking about this album and hardly anything worth giving a second listen to. But with albums like these you have to remember what they’re intended for and Simpson and her producers were obviously looking for a party album and for the most part, they make a pretty decent job of providing one. Timbaland’s work lends a fair few decent beats and there are a couple of songs I’d have no problem hearing playing in the background of a house party or such social event.

Lyrically, there’s still nothing special going on here, and with such original song titles as “Boys” and “Outta My Head”, one wouldn’t really expect there to be. It’s not an album that you’re going to want to keep on your playlist for very long. You might just finding yourself with your head in your hands because of ridiculously stale song matter, which include break-ups, celebrity culture and of course, questioning the morals of the world as a population. Then there’s the token ballad, which is totally out of place on here. The vocals are monotonous and it momentarily breaks the already shaky flow of the album.

Bittersweet World is at least well produced and packed with crisp hooks. You may not want to admit it, but you may well find yourself singing along and clicking your fingers to some of the ridiculously catchy tracks. But it’s not an album for everyone; you have to have a fair amount of tolerance to get all the way through. But compare it to some of the other crap in the charts and you’ll at least find a slick, trippy album that is at worst, harmless and at best, a damn fine record to throw on at parties.

The 411: If you don't hear this album, you're not missing much. But if you do, you'll be pleasantly surprised with the smoothness with which Simpson creates a bunch of happy-go-lucky hooks and the way Bittersweet World manages to not become a bore. I think Timbaland's production helps, but the new dance-pop direction makes for a pretty damn good record. While far from flawless, it's a big improvement on the drizzle that were her first two albums.

Final Score:  7.0   [ Good ]