Search - Nicole :: Her Name Is Nicole

2007 Import from UK? Ha! This Hasn't Been Released ANYWHER

Ariadne Cho | where am i? good question. | 05/02/2008

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Seriously. This album hasn't been released in the States or outside of the States. On the Amazon UK site, the release date has been updated from May 2008 to June 2008. Keep in mind, this album was supposed to drop in November 2007!!! It's never a good thing when an album release is pushed back more than 2 times. Let's see...supposed to release in November 2007, January 2008, February 2008, March 2008, May 2008, June 2008, and currently (as of 6/12/2008) August 2008. That's 7 release dates in this album's history. No album is THAT GOOD that it has to be continually pushed back. Personally, I think the record company is trying to see how much interest or how many preorders (you can preorder on Amazon's UK site) the album can generate before releasing. How sad - Nicole's talent alone isn't enough and it shows that her company doesn't think it's enough.



Besides, release 4 songs from the album and not drop the album? Not a good sign."

A Well-Crafted, Slightly Flawed Set

Cory T. Shaeffer | Pittsburgh | 11/27/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Nicole Scherzinger is the driving force behind the Pussycat Dolls - but she is not a household name along the lines of other pop stars that have attempted to go solo after their group's albums burned up the charts.



Well, Scherzinger's solo effort sadly was not given much of a chance, and it's a shame, because there are a few potential hits here. The first two singles, "Whatever U Like" and "Baby Love" failed to take hold despite the fact that they are both hook-filled, fun tracks. But the reason why the album didn't take off is, in my opinion, that it just wasn't edgy or immediate enough. "Rio" and "Puakenikeni" are two additional tracks that reinforce that point. In some ways, it reminds me of Paula Abdul's "Rush" album - there were massive hooks, seductive lyrics, but the slamming grooves were missing.



The bottom line is that if you like the Pussycat Dolls' latest (Doll Domination), then you will probably like this. There are far more ballads than I expected - and none that exactly rival Janet Jackson's "Come Back to Me" (which is where Scherzinger, who is now 30, may need to find a home if she is to break through as a solo artist.)



All the things that make a pop album good are present here. But ironically, most of the things that made the PCD machine successful are missing or scaled back. And with newcomers like Katy Perry and Lady Gaga on the scene now, this album just got buried under the numbers crunch (as did Mya's excellent "Liberation" album). Worth the full import price if you are a dedicated fan or simply love this genre of music....the rest of you can just pick up the Pussycat Dolls' "Doll Domination" and you get pretty much the same exact thing as this album."