(Standalone single)
Everybody's favourite teen idol is releasing a new song every Monday until Christmas, and though we've already had four or five, I'm going to back track and tip you all on what's worth listening to and what's to be avoided, for the following reasons:
1.) It's a chance to (potentially) slam JB every week
2.) I have suddenly adopted a truly heretic non-Belieber policy following the Canadian star's staggering out of a Rio brothel last week
3.) Anyone claiming to appeal to 12 year-old Twitter fangirls whilst endorsing human trafficking in deprived South America needs stopping, reverently, in his tracks. That said, what we have here is a delicate issue - because the music deserves fair trial regardless of the performer's belligerence.
And so, without further ado, "Heartbreaker"...
And perhaps aggravatingly, this one is good. Not very good, not excellent, just good. The vocal is matured and actually, quite surprisingly, croons nicely, rhythmically spewing varied soul tones and adept pitch changes over a groovy bass-driven melody, complete with minimal wah-wah guitar overdubs and those occasional near-clichéd down-tempo R 'n' B snare hits. It isn't altogether unlikable, feeling genuinely like a sonic step-up from the late-teenage "Believe"-era releases, and leaving far behind Bieber's bland boyish "Baby" bullshit. It's a tad more serious - and I like that.
Sadly, it still lacks any real conviction, any message, any innovation and indeed, any skill or instrumental element to be marveled at, the same applying to the hopelessly generic lyrics. It is what pop music has become, and epitomises. with almost tragic perfection, the Hollywood dream gone wrong. Of course it doesn't mean to, but that makes it plain alright - if nothing else...
★★★
Versions of “Heartbreaker”
Single Version - 4:22