Vital Idol: Blake’s A.D.D. Is Both A Gift And A Curse

Posted on | March 2, 2008 | 1 Comment

This review was originally published on Epinions.com.

Blake Lewis is the most creative and ambitious American Idol contestant ever. But in the game of pop music, where creative and ambitious take a back seat to catchy hooks and showy vocals, his style isn’t suited to sell tons of records. He could’ve actually tried releasing You Give Love A Bad Name, which was one of the top downloads on iTunes via his EP, but he went left. He didn’t take the easy way out. His style isn’t one you can put in a box, but that’s also part of the reason the album isn’t what it could’ve been.

A.D.D. stands for Audio Day Dream and it aptly describes what the album is. With the Euro-pop synth heavy feel, the album is a myriad of sounds that keep your ears open and listening. The lead single Break Anotha hits hard and he uses gimmick vocals by doing the rap/sing style that’s popular today and it works. But it’s one of the only songs in which he uses hip hop as a way to showcase his talent. Know My Name features the cool Lupe Fiasco and he echoes his vocals, but it’s boring and old in comparison. Gots To Get Her is interesting because of it’s inspiration. It tries to be a 2007 version of Puttin’ On The Ritz, which is just smooth enough to work. What’cha Got 2 Lose is what Justin Timberlake would sound like if he were paired with Roger Troutman. It’s one of Lewis’ most inspired vocals. Because I purchased this one on iTunes, Human was added on as a bonus track and it features the best hook on the entire album.

When he goes away from the upbeat stuff, he turns into a pop singer, which isn’t his strong suit. Songs like How Many Words and Surrender (which are pretty much the same song) are hurt because of the lack of strength in his voice. Lewis isn’t good enough yet to get away with it. He mimics Adam Levine in Hate 2 Love Her and Prince in She’s Makin’ Me Lose It, and while both songs feature enough in the funky production to make them work, they don’t because the vocals don’t even really sound like Lewis.

As a ballad singer, he’s hit or miss. On Without You his vocals are flat until the end and the song is entirely sappy. End Of The World is a little better because he actually sings it like someone who is desperate. The vocals are still lacking, but they are layered so they sound more full. The best of the ballads is I Got U. The production is a little peppier and he sings in a range that suits him better and his vocals stand out for once.

A.D.D. shouldn’t be punished because it’s very creative and is musically ambitious. But it is because his vocals are mostly flat when he’s not upbeat, and half the album is either a mid tempo song or a ballad. He leaves the beat boxing to a minimum and saves it mostly for interludes.  This is good because while on television beat boxing looks cool, but in an audio track without the visual, it doesn’t seem as impressive. There have been worse singers who’ve had a hit song and hit record, so if he gets a chance, I think he can mature into a pretty decent musician.

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