Track-by-Track: Ke$ha - Animal

Oh, Ke$ha. I am not a fan, and I should probably preface this review with that. I find her obnoxious. Every interview I've seen, she's come across as clueless and/or intoxicated and the fact that a song as average as Tik Tok has become a number one hit for so many weeks speaks volumes about the sorry state of hit music. All that being said, in the interest of objectivity I'm going to stuff my annoyance away and try to focus on the music, because there are a few high points here.

1. Your Love Is My Drug - A nice, summery Katy Perry type song. This has a great chorus that is brought down by whiny sing-speak verses. Still, it's one of the few tracks that isn't ridiculously immature. 8/10

2. Tik Tok - I really do think you have to be under the influence of something to enjoy this fully. The lyrics are just so annoying. They're not cute, they're not funny, they just make her look/sound ridiculous. That being said, the song is a hit for a reason. It's devilishly catchy. 6/10

3. Take It Off - I despise the sampling in this chorus. It's so lazy and obvious. In fact, this is less a song than it is a look-at-me attention grabber. 3/10

4. Kiss N Tell - Finally, something resembling a melody. I would like this so much more if somebody else sang it, but even with Ke$ha's snotty vocals it's one of the early standouts. 7/10

5. Stephen - The chorus is alright, but those verses! Her delivery just ruins it. She doesn't sound good. At all. 6/10

6. Blah Blah Blah- Unlistenable. This is beyond bad, and the fact that it's the second highest selling track on the album is baffling. By far the worst song on the album. 1/10

7. Hungover - Here we get the big electro ballad. Maybe it's supposed to be taken seriously, but coming after the first six songs, it's just a little silly. 5/10

8. Party At A Rich Dude's House - Before I even heard this, I hated the title, so I came in programmed to hate the song as well. It's actually better than anticipated, a bit more new wave than the previous stuff with a great guitar riff ruined by the stupid lyrics. 7/10

9. Backstabber - I could see this becoming annoying, but it fits the whole Ke$ha sound a lot better than most of the tracks. I don't hate it. Maybe it's the subdued vocals in the verses. 7/10

10. Blind - A more straightforward pop song, minus the irritating antics that drag down most of the album. This is far more stately (or at least, goes for stately). The vocals ruin it, though. They don't mesh with the music at all. 6/10

11. Dinosaur - Strangely, one of my favorites. Unlike most everything else, the snottiness and immaturity actually works here. There's a wicked 80's synth line after the chorus and, as annoying as the chant-singing could be, it somehow isn't here. 8/10

12. Dancing With Tears In My Eyes - Back to straight-up electro, and this is pure filler. I was hoping this would be a cover of the Ultravox song (which the much-superior Velvet did in early 2009), but instead, it's utterly forgettable. 6/10

13. Boots & Boys - Irritating, spoken verses give way to a chorus that isn't half-bad. But it's another example of the shallow, materialistic subject matter of the album, which would be okay if she found a way to write about these things interestingly. "Give me boots and boys" = not interesting. 6/10

14. Animal - Shows a little bit of promise, as the subject matter here is a little more interesting, as is the melody and song construction. It's not highly memorable, but I'll give her a few points for doing something different. 7/10

*On a final note, I've heard another Ke$ha song (Mr. Watson) that is actually better than most of this album. It's an example of how to do the sleazy/immature thing with an actual melody. Though the lyrics are... well, illegal?

Album Grade: 5.9/10