Melanie C Albums (4)
What The Critics Say
Beautiful Intentions, the third solo album by former Spice Girl Melanie C, marked a turning point in the big-voiced pop star's career; it was the first album released on Melanie's own label, Red Girl Records, following her departure from Virgin Records. Thus, Melanie C was finally allowed to don the name "Indie Spice," which she had lingering around her for some time already. The new creative control that Melanie C had over her album broadened her horizons considerably; Melanie allowed herself to fly more freely on Intentions, giving her solo music -- which was always rock-tinged pop music -- a sharp new look. On Beautiful Intentions, Melanie C developed her style into an aggressive pop-angled album boasting heavy beats with dramatic rock swings doused in musical cyclones of energy. She borrowed qualities from other heavy-talented rock divas such as Anastacia to produce a more bombastic sampling this time around. Individually, the majority of the songs were well suited for radio, with strong lyrical support, thanks to Melanie, who co-wrote all but one track on the album. What's most exciting is how, on the album's choice ballads, Melanie C actually soars over the music and kicks Spice booty with terrific vocals; the poignant "First Day of My Life" is the strongest individual track, as Melanie glimmers with poise over simple yet classy music. Tracks like "Next Best Superstar" and "Beautiful Intentions" showcase Melanie C best in the pop light, and the remaining ten tracks all support her stunning voice with contemporary rock synthesized with pure pop. The final product is simply dazzling; and Beautiful Intentions is without a doubt the strongest solo album by any of the Spice Girls. Truth be told, it was one of the strongest solo pop albums of 2005, regardless of artist. ~ Matthew Chisling, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
When Mel C launched her solo career in 1999 with Northern Star, she embraced her persona of "Indie Spice," turning out a colorful, promising collection that was hardly "indie," but surely had more musical weight than any other Spice Girl-related solo platter (which may be why it was one of only two released in the US). It didn't sell particularly well, though, which must have scared Melanie Chisholm, if the four year gap between Northern Star and 2003's Reason is any indication. And if the near half-decade between records isn't a sign that she was shocked into change after the indifferent reaction to her debut, the streamlined, safe approach on Reason is proof that Mel C was desperate to make sure she still had a career of some sort. Falling somewhere between Robbie Williams' stabs at MOR and Geri Halliwell's adult contemporary balladry and dance-pop, Reason aims for the pop center, trying to reach as many people as possible while still trying to retain some semblance of hipness. It winds up sounding flattened out, particularly on the ballads, which contain no aural character and tend to play up the fact that Chisholm has little range as a vocalist. The midtempo and dance numbers fare better since they play to her strengths and their hooks are more evident, but too much of Reason sounds stuck in time, as if it could have come out in 1999 as easily in 2003. This would be alright if the songs worked, but most of them are colorless and characterless, sounding as if their main goal is to get on pop radio. There are two exceptions to the rule: the sweetly soulful "Lose Myself In You," sounding like "Say You'll Be There" slowed down for seduction, and "On the Horizon," a number co-written by ex-New Radical Gregg Alexander which, along with Santana's "Game of Love," proves that he is the catchiest, smartest professional mainstream pop songwriter of the early 2000s. But two songs do not make an album, and these bright moments - along with, to a lesser extent, the lead single/album opener "Here It Comes Again," whose slow crawl is mannered, but a bit of a grower nonetheless - aren't enough to make Reason work, which is a real disappointment after the very good, very promising Northern Star. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Although she wasn't anointed Indie Spice by the British music press until after the Spice Girls' second album, Melanie Chisholm always made it clear that she preferred Blur to Take That. Of course, her personal musical tastes never surfaced on the Spices' albums, which may be the reason she is the first Spice to release a solo album while still in the group. With her debut, Northern Star, Mel C wants to break from her Sporty Spice persona while proving herself as a legitimate musician and she does, more or less, with a surprisingly diverse record. Melanie C has a fairly strong voice, a good sense of melody, and carries a tune with some personality, which is one of the reasons why the genre-hopping of Northern Star works. She can convincingly deliver everything from the pop balladry of the title track to the snarling, neo-industrial punk statement of purpose "Goin' Down." And it's a good thing that she can sound convincing on a variety of different styles, since Northern Star attempts to summarize pop music circa 1999. It begins with "Go!," a William Orbit-produced slice of swinging '60s pop with electronica underpinnings, and closes with the ballad "Feel the Sun." In between, she tries a bit of everything -- Brit pop on "Suddenly Monday," post-Garbage modern rock on "Ga Ga," techno-inflected dance on "I Turn to You," urban balladry on "Never Be the Same Again" (complete with a rap by Left Eye Lopes), and melodic adult pop on "Why." Certainly, that's a bit more stylistically schizophonic than Geri Halliwell's album, but that's its charm. It's not a knock-out, yet Northern Star is a solid, well-crafted alterna-pop of modest but palpable charms. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
