Rather like those scented soaps or candles that should, in theory, emanate the sumptuous aromas of natural perfections but in fact reek of pungently cloying chemical attempts that don't even approximate the things they're supposed to, let alone do them any kind of justice, so Candy Rose's debut album is a stab at perfect pop that misses the mark rather in its artificial and largely unsatisfying approach.
It's a little difficult to identify precisely what it is about this album that's so disappointing. Ok, so it sounds rather manufactured for starters, even though it actually isn't. But then, Girls Aloud are as manufactured as they come, but I actually quite like some of their stuff. The vocals aren't quite as polished those you might find on a mainstream pop smash, but they're not terrible, and nor's the overall production, so that's not the problem.
Lyrically it's not exactly strong, but then, you don't expect Shakespeare or Leonard Cohen to be penning lyrics on an album that's clearly aimed at the mainstream. So that's not the problem either.
One question I do find myself asking is 'why?' Why would someone - someone fixated with Fall Out Boy's Patrick Stump, to the extent that he's not only cited as an influence but even has a song to him (entitled 'Patrick Stump,' surprisingly enough) - go the independent route to produce such mainstream blandness? I suppose the answers stem (no stump-related pun intended) from the music industry's disarray, and credit should be given to Candy for going ahead and putting the music out there rather than waiting for her big break to come via X Factor. And, apart from the 'hidden' Madonna cover at the end, she's written or co-written all of her own material, too, indicating that she's nt only got determination, but is no-one's puppet.
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This doesn't change the fact that 'A Rollercoaster Love' isn't so much bubblegum pop as sonic chewing gum, in that its largely undemanding and doesn't retain its flavour very long.
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