Leona Lewis - Glassheart

Introduction

X Factor global sensation star is finally back with her third studio album, after so many controversies and a delay of almost one year after the failing supposed-to-be lead single Collide in summer 2011. This is by far the most delicate moment in Lewis' carrier since her sophomore album Echo didn't confirm the extremely high expectations due to the huge and worldwide success of her debut album Spirit and Bleeding Love. The intention is quiet clear: trying to move Leona from the power-ballad singer style to dance diva (same old story). The first attempt didn't convince the public, moreover the drama about the copyrights with DJ Avicii didn't help Leona to break the charts with her very first dance track. The label then decided to get back to the studio, re-work on the album (but unfortunately not on the “what-the-hell-is-that” type of cover) and come back. Here what I think about the work: Glassheart.

The Album: track by track

First track is the lead single Trouble. Leona takes a step back to her origins and this is a power ballad that shows again Leona's beautiful voice. Of course I can't say neither that this is something new to her nor that this is her best ballad. Still a nice album opener.

And she keeps staying on the ballad style with track number 2, Un Love Me. Nice chorus but, seriously, how is this different from Echo? This could have fit perfectly with her previous material, and again, not much better that some other songs of hers. So far, the new Leona is yet to be found. Waiting.

Listening to Lovebird, we are seriously thinking that this is Echo part II. Nice ballad with nice tempo, just as Love Letter or You Don't Care. Oh and here it is the whistle! What a new thing. But she does it perfectly, as usual.

Ok, they weren't lying: there IS a new Leona. Come Alive is a very nice mid-tempo with nice background dance music and her vocal kills the chorus. The verses are hypnotic thanks to the music. Very very enjoyable track, probably a better attempt than Collide. The new Leona might be good.

Amazing slow ballad follows: Fireflies is sweet, gentle and beautifully sung. Big chorus after half of the song. The old Leona still kicks ass! Did we need a new one? This song screams no.

Another great classic with I To You. Very nice low register in the verses and the production of the song is overall well done. Not oversung but still a nice vocal effort. The only thing missing in this song is a power middle eight.

Dance music again with Shake You Up. It is supposed to be catchy but it sounds a bit too cheap. Her voice doesn't suit the song, she is way better than this song. Not something we want to hear from Leona. Stop The Clocks is another Echo-sound song, but not that great. Not boring, but it might sound dated.

And here we go: Leona teams up again with her long time producer Ryan Tedder in Favourite Scar. As long as I'm personally over Ryan Tedder for long time, I have to admit they really work together. Weirdest moment of the song: “All eyes on me in the middle of the street...” and my head started singing “just like a Circus” and mixing Leona and Britney is quiet a brain trick. Ok, end of the jokes.

When It Hurts is another nice power ballad, the production maybe could have pushed the song even harder, nice guitars and pianos. Not something I will remember from the album, though.

This finally gets serious. Here we have the title track, Glassheart. And yes, I can say it clearly: a-ma- zing dance-vibe song. Perfect vocals, perfect and catchy house breakdown, perfect production. If only the whole album could have had this quality and style, new Leona would have won hands down. Since it's not this case, we still have to consider this song just a gem. This needs to be released otherwise, this project is non-sense. Go for it, Leona. If you really want to do this, do it with this song.

From the dancefloor directly to the bed. Fingerprint is way too quiet also for classic Leona. Still enjoyable is some kind of way but putting this after a great uptempo is probably not the best choice.

Oh well, the album ends with the alternative version of Trouble which sees the collaboration with rapper Childish Gambino. It is better than the solo version to be honest. I personally would have switched places with track number 1 and put the solo version as a bonus track.

The verdict

Ok. After a good listening of the album I can definitely say two things: they obviously took a huge step back from the original project to get back the old style that fits Leona so good. Revolutionary album? Absolutely not. Current style for Leona? Maybe. Quality album? Yes. Enough to put Leona back at number 1 worldwide? Oh I don't see this coming. Sorry Leona, but this album proves that her voice is still amazing but yet not ready to be considered as much versatile to explore different styles. Best moments of the album: Glassheart (you got this right, Leona), Fireflies, Favourite Scar and Childish Gambino's rap in Trouble is an amazing feature (a serious one, not a-la Don't Let Me Down, just saying). I want more from Leona. She still needs to find a proper identity. The diva style worked better for me, who cares about the charts, everybody flops somewhere and dance music is overrated these days (we have to think Rihanna for that but that's another story, sorry.)

3.5 / 5

Buy it here: iTunes - Standard Version