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American R&B turned Electro-Dance artist, Kelis, released her fifth studio album, Flesh Tone, worldwide on 17th May 2010 apart from the United States and Canada where it is due for release on 6th July 2010.

This is the first album released by Kelis on the Interscope label, working under the will.i.am branding which is mainly responsible for her switch of sound.

The album is summery, sweaty and primal and is perfect for long gym sessions, long car drives or summer beach parties and the album artwork was directed by British portrait and fashion photographer, John "Rankin" Waddell. It is very conceptual and fits with the primal dance feel of the album.

As for the tracks...

1. Intro - As the title suggests, the introduction track to the album. The track builds up to a crescendo of electro beats, destinctive Kelis vocals and spacey synths. It all sounds very "Daft Punk" until all sounds fade out into a chant of "We control the dance floor..." repeated until it kicks off straight into the next track which is the first proper track on the album. 7/10

2. 22nd Century - A slow euphoric intro slowly builds up into an electro stomper of a track. Heavy beats, repetitive vocals and use of digital effects pull this track straight from the future of the 22nd century. Kelis' view is that everybody will be dancing, and if this is the sort of thing playing out of our speakers then, she is very right! By the time the track hits the three and a half minute mark, all the stops are out and you should be dancing, breaking down and enjoying yourself already! The track then breaks into an instrumental intro for the next one, as all the tracks on this album do. 8/10

3. 4th Of July (Fireworks) - This is the second single from this campaign, and after a few listens it has already surpassed the launch track, Acapella, in my eyes (or ears?). This is incredibly summery, euphoric, dancable and even sing-along. More dirty electro beats, a memorable lyric sheet and a spacey pre-chorus break make this track one of the total highlights of this album. You can't help but feel good after listening to this track! 10/10

4. Home - Seemlessly flowing on from the previous track, Home is again very powerful, feel good and danceable. A very memorable chorus, catchy beats and screeching synths make sure this track stays in your head long after listening to it. Kelis' huskier, almost whispered vocals add to the feel of the track and it all builds up to explode in the final chorus before dropping out on an instrumental break to the next track. 10/10

5. Acapella - This was the lead single from the Flesh Tone campaign. After being very successful worldwide, and featured all over radio, TV and commercial slots, everyone should know this tune by now. It has a distinct David Guetta feel to it, and as he produced the track I guess that should be expected! Acapella never fails to bring people to the dance floor, able to sing along and dance to a song so well known for this summer. Dancey synth beats, various breaks and buildups and a memorable, chanty chorus made this a perfect album launch single. 10/10

6.  Scream - This is one of the albums more heavier tracks, with a very heavy bassline once the bare-bones intro has finished. Kelis vocals are very robotic here, which adds to the tracks electro feel. The verses are recited as though Kelis was just programmed to say them on demmand but again this is not a bad thing for this track. The verses and chorus almost seem to have reversed roles here, as the chorus is a lot less intense than the verses. This is also a perfect workout track, and very motivational! 10/10

7. Emancipate - This track is again extremely electro, hard hitting and catchy, although a little repetitive on the chorus. The verses are perfectly structured though and Kelis sounds wonderful on them and a lot more organic. This does come across as a bit of a gay anthem too, especially when the repetitive chorus does kick in! Kelis is clearly showing self power and self belief here, and again this is a very motivational track! After this comes a rather strange but original intro to the next track... 9/10

8. Brave - Another hard electro track, opening with Kelis' vocals introducing the theme of the song as well as synths looping over in the background. This all acts as a mega-buildup to the chorus, which is again very powerful and full of self belief and inspiration. The lines and between chorus and verses are a little blurred but this just makes the track just feel more epic and doesn't disrupt the lyrics and theme of the track at all. Lots of heavy beats, synths and cymbal crashes create a very "set free" sound, which I believe was the aim of the track. 9/10

9. Song For The Baby - This final track starts off a little different from the others, will a brass introduction and initially I was worried this would ruin the lot. Then in kick the piano backing tracks, heavy beats and Kelis' echoey vocals and, whilst this track sounds a little different from the rest of the album, is still falls into the same genre and sound just with a bit more originality in the instrumentals. Unfortunately, as with a lot of final tracks, this is the weakest on the album, even if it isn't a weak track in general overal. Once this track fades out though there are no more intros to more tracks, this is the lot. 7/10

Overall rating: 9/10

Kelis has taken her sound and career in a completely new direction with the release of Flesh Tone, but this is not a bad thing at all and when all is said and done the results are much more memorable, feel good, upbeat and dancable. When looking at the track listing, it does look a little short on tracks but manages to not feel short when listening to the whole thing, which is an accomplishment. The album has failed to make any impressionable dents on any of the european album charts, which is very suprising as the album feels very european indeed. Still, with the release due in her home country soon where she has a lot more recognition, hopefully this will be a smash for her as this album deserves to be commended for it. Whether you are after that new gym soundtrack, a soundtrack for your summer, a collection of tracks for a party or just to blast out at home or in your car, this does the trick and hits all the right buttons.

If you get a chance, check out the videos for the currently released singles from this campaign too, they have been a little spectacular!

British pop girl-group The Saturdays unveiled their latest music video this weekend for the new single, Missing You. This is the lead single from their third album, Headlines, which is due for release in August and available for pre-order now.

After a bit of a rocky second album campaign with Wordshaker, the girls are hoping to re-launch themselves off the back of a new album and a fresh set of tracks. The tracklist for the new album is yet to be revealed, but it is rumoured to contain previous singles Forever Is Over and Ego, but with Wordshaker containing some brilliant pop gems, I'm hoping they aren't trying to wipe the album from their memories.

So, the new track itself is quite summery, borders on ballad / mid tempo stomper, and is actually a little trancey and euphoric in some places. I do feel the track needs something more though, it feels like an element is missing. Maybe a memorable middle-eight or a beefed up chorus will do it, but Missing You is still a decent track and will hopefully do well for the girls.

The video, however, is a bit lacklustre no matter how summery it may be. The dance routine seems a little clunky for a track with this sound and the beach shots of the girls look like a Thomas Cook advert with a slightly higher budget. They all look lovely though, so well done them at least!

Here's the video to judge for yourself...

Hot off the heels of previous single "Naturally", Selena Gomez and co have premiered their new video for the lead single of their yet to-be-titled sophmore album, Round & Round.

It seems Naturally has only just relented its assult on the UK charts, so this seems like a quick turn around for me but thankfully it is not in vein.

Round & Round copies the electro-pop sounds of their previous single, and the better tracks from their debut album Kiss and Tell. This is, of course, a good thing as the teen rock genre could only take them so far and limit their fan base.

The track, whilst not as strong as "Naturally", still has radio friendly hit written over it and Selena sounds as good as ever. The video on the other hand was shot in Prague, and see's Selena play a teen spy looking less a lot less teen than ever. She looks stunning and even takes a shot at a bit of platinum blonde with one wig!

Here's the video, expect to see it rotating along the music channels soon!

After a four year hiatus having babies and the like, Christina Aguilera released her eagerly anticipated fourth full-length English studio album on Monday 7th June. Following on from the moderate worldwide success of the lead single; "Not Myself Tonight", Xtina let us in gently with that as first single choice as the rest of the record is slightly more obscure, creative and futuristic sounding. This record takes a clear move away from the previous album, Back to Basics, which can only be a good thing!

On with the tracks...

1. Bionic - Almost sounding like merely an intro track for the album in the first minute, this title track then kicks off into a full blown chorus and turns into a "proper" track. The verses continue to sound a little like album breaks, but the chorus and chorus buildups propel the track straight into the 22nd century, or at least what I can imagine the 22nd century may sound like...? A hard, constant beat ensures the track doesn't lose its direction and overall this works as a great album opener! 8/10

2. Not Myself Tonight - Previously mentioned as this campaigns lead single, Not Myself Tonight marked a return to form for Xtina in my opinion, although the track only received moderate success worldwide. This is one of the higher tempo tracks on the album and is an instant club stomper. The urban beats, catchy chorus and memorable "Christina" style middle eight makes this a classic. 10/10

3. Woohoo - This is the next (second) single from the Bionic campaign and i'm not sure how it is going to be received. The suggestive lyrics are a little cliche and feel a bit dated. I can imagine remixes sounding immense in clubs though, so this should lend itself to a good few of those. Production is a little lacking in this track and a lot of the time you are listening to just a beat and vocals. Also the phone in "featuring artist"; Nicki Minaj, manages to deliver a rap break down which is almost incomprehensible at times (more so than most rap breaks!). Might want to re-think the second single choice Xtina and co. 5/10

4. Elastic Love - The future sounding, robotic sound of Elastic Love doesn't lend itself to Christina's vocals all that well, and sounds quite similar to the re-produced or extra tracks off of her Keeps Gettin' Better - A Decade of Hits compilation. Saying that, the lyrics a quite clever and well written and the production values are high here, even if they are a little bland. The catchy chorus redeems the track a bit and ensures this track doesn't get too "future electro" for it's own good. 6/10

5. Desnudate - A return to the higher tempto sounds here, this track plays with the theme of nudity and is a little racey - which works here. Latin ad-libs, a little brass and sensual moans add that sassy feel to the track and Christina's vocals often belt out to remind us of what she is capable of. A fast drum line keeps the track dancable and overall creates quite a feel good sound. More of this please! 9/10

6. Love & Glamour (Intro) - Vocal album interlude. Christina...where did you pull this little speach from as it sounds very familiar(!)

7. Glam - Following the theme of high fashion and glamour from the previous interlude, this track is all about superficial glamour and love of clothes. Unfortunately, the track isn't overly glamourous and just feels boring. It is also a break from the overly futuristic sounding tracks so far. A boring beat, unmemorable lyrics and pretentious sounding attitude of the track just add to the dislike. A bit of a skipper for me! 3/10

8. Prima Donna -  Turn your subwoofers up, the bass in this track is a little immense! A distinctly hip-hop sounding beat, this almost sounds like it was taken from Rihanna's "Rated R". That isn't a bad thing though, and works well with the theme of the track and aggression in Xtina's vocals. What propels this track from quite good to amazing is the synth sample of the Jackson 5's "Can You Feel It", a nod at the late king of pop I'd imagine. Nice one Christina! 10/10

9. Morning Desert (Intro) - Another album interlude. This sounds less fake than the previous one though, and marks another switch of theme for the coming tracks...

10. Sex For Breakfast - The pace is slowed down here, for a bit of soul and chilled beats. Christina's voice sounds raw and top form here. The lyrics are a play on food and sex and follow on from the previous interlude. Production is minimal here and the slow beat, piano backing track and whispered lines make this good ambient background music material, especially if you're looking to get some Sex for Breakfast yourself. If not, maybe look elsewhere for your mood creating music as the lyrics get a little explicit even if it isn't glaringlu obvious. 6/10

 11. Lift Me Up - Another slow tempo ballad-like track, this doesn't really fit with the sound of the album even if there is an interlude to break this section up. The lyrics are inspiring and well performed by Xtina, although this doesn't really excuse the track from breaking the coherrent sound offered here so far. If this was on her 2002 album Stripped then this would have worked as the track itself is nice. But it doesn't belong here! 4/10

12. My Heart (Intro) - Yet another album interlude performed by Christina's bundle of joy, her son Max. This also sounds very out of place after Xtina just spent the first half of this album performing tracks about sex, nudity, glamour and other adult material.

13. All I Need - Yaaaawn. Another ballad this time all about Christina's feelings towards her son. This is very similar to Britneys' "My Baby", although Britney pulls it off better (only slightly though!). Again this track DOES NOT WORK in this album. It is distracting, breaks the flow, the themes and the sound. Typical slow drum beat, piano backing and vocals make this track up. Skip skip skip please. 1/10

14. I Am - More sentimental, self indulgent ballad material can found here. If you've not given up on the album at this point, well done to you and there's just one more to endure before getting back to the good stuff! There isn't much else to say about this that wasn't said for the previous track. Nice vocals from Christina though, now put them to a nice track and we'll be getting somwhere! 2/10

15. You Lost Me - The title of this track is almost what can be explained for the amount of people maybe pressing the stop buttons on their music players by now. You lost them! Who ever decided to put this vast amount of ballads together needs firing immediately! I don't care if it's a "section" or "theme" for this part of the album. It's not nesessary and definitely not enjoyable. SKIP. 1/10

16. I Hate Boys - No interlude to mark the end of the last five tracks of dull listening, I Hate Boys brings that futuristic pop sound back. This sounds a little like Christina's 2008 track; "Keeps Gettin' Better". The lyrics are fun and the high production values make a welcome re-appearence. The track is a little short at just over two minutes and feels like it's over too quickly, but lukily things are not slowed down again for a while now. Thank you Christina and co! 8/10

17.  My Girls - The track starts off a little funky and almost Goldfrapp sounding, then breaks into a catchy, chanty chorus. This is a song about power to Christina's girls, running the show apparently. The lyrics feel a little over-used but the funky beats and fun nature of the track make this an enjoyable listen. No futuristic sounding production here though, just typical pop sounds. 7/10

18. Vanity - Christina opens this song with a teasy one liner, then the synthy beats kick in and playful verses start. The track is themed around self loving, vain, pretentious thoughts about yourself but works to its advantage as listening to it almost makes you believe the lyrics. Or is that just me...? Anyway, the chorus is a little weak and the production sounds unfinished and lacking in any "oomph" but then Christina belts out with her signature yell which I know i've missed, and all feels right in the world. 7/10

19. Monday Morning - This track manages to sound extremely vintage yet incredibly current at the same time. Funky disco beats, futuristic synths and retro claps create a very interesting sound, and a track that doesn't sound like a Christina track at all, which may have something to do with her weak vocal perfomance here! Still, this is definitely one of the albums highlights and brings the records coherrent sound back in place. 8/10

20. Bobblehead - As much as the "Wah Wah's" in this track may annoy you, Bobblehead is borderline amazing! Clever lyrics (although slightly Ke$ha!), anthemic production, various dance breakdowns and vocal chants, this is a track you can go crazy to! It reminds me of a Basement Jaxx track, which is totally a good thing. I look forward to hearing this in a club and letting loose! 9/10

21. Birds Of Prey - Drawing the album to a close slowly, the track opens with synthetic sounds and vocal chanting. The feel of this track returns to the chilled sound of "Sex for Breakfast", just without the sex, or a morning meal for that matter. Whilst this one isn't single material at all, it makes for a good album track and if interludes or slower tempo tracks had to be used earlier to to break things up, this could have been one of them and worked a lot better. The lyrics are very creative and imaginative and the production screams of Ladytron, who did in fact produce this track. Pleasent, but nothing exciting. 6/10

22. Stronger Than Ever - Another ballad just had to be plonked in here didn't it. At least with this one the production values are a bit better, and Christina gives a very strong vocal delivery. It manages to still sound quite futristic with its heavier drum beat, spacey breaks and echoing guitar riffs. I'll let this one off...just this one. 4/10

23. I Am (Stripped) - This is a stripped down version of the previous, same titled track "I Am". The same comments apply, but the track works a little better in this stripped form and is quite a nice listen. If this track just HAD to be used, this version should have made it alone instead. 3/10

 24. Little Dreamer - The final track on this slightly over-lenghty album, Little Dreamer sounds like another snooze fest but is actually an electro gem hidden away at the end of a long road. Sentimental lyrics, electro pop beats and a strong vocal performance make this a very good way to end the album, reminding us of its prime sounds and Christina's awesome voice. Had this album been 8 tracks or so shorter, this would have rounded things off nicely. 6/10

Overall rating: 6.5/10

What should have marked an epic return to form in Christuna Aguilera's carrer actually felt a little too crafted, too long lived and actually lacking a lot of punch when it mattered. The four year break clearly built up a lot of material in Xtina's catalogue to use and a lot of it is awesome, but a lot of it is definitely not so awesome and it seems, for some reason, like the powers that be selected one too many not so awesome tracks to make up this record. When the concise theme and sound hit the mark, it worked really well but unfortunately there are too many breaks from this sound and into ballad territory. Maybe the regular edition doesn't drag as much, but also lacks some great bonus tracks that the deluxe edition (reviewed here) offers. Still, if you are a fan of Christina's voice itself, you may be able to overlook the ballad heavy second section of the album and appreciate the record more. I tried, I really did, and I'm no ballad hater, but only the crazy uptempo tracks seemed to be worth a listen here. It will be interesting to see which tracks are selected as singles in the future as I can't see that many featured here prime for a single release...

After much hype, Lady GaGa finally premiered her latest music video epic for the single Alejandro today. Following suit from the ten minute video for her previous single, Telephone, this one weighs in at just over eight minutes.

I'm not quite sure of the concept or story behind this one as of yet, I need to give it a few more watches. All I can say is there are a fair few dancers, men in fishnet tights and heels and GaGa's costumes are increasingly morbid. GaGa does show off a few more complex dance moves than before though, which is nice to see!

Let me know what you think the usual way...

As the release date to Kylie Minogues' latest album release; Aphrodite, draws closer, fans are clearly getting increasingly excited for the release and a chance to hear the record in full.

Just as a teaser, this megamix preview of some of the tracks has hit the internet and I am going to be the first to say THIS SOUNDS AMAZING! A coherent, polished album with a definitive sound to it. This is going to be one of Kylie's best from the sounds of it.

So without further blabbing, take a listen to the megamix below and let me know what you think!