Britney Spears

Like its problematic title, Britney's fifth album is complex. It is very much the comeback we've been waiting for. "Freakshow" and "Radar" stand out, but every track is chic, danceable and sexy. In short, it's everything we've always asked of Britney (she's even singing quite well). But emotionally, it hits uncomfortably close to home. How do we hear "Get Naked" without picturing the crotch shots, the robotic production of "Heaven on Earth" without reliving her 2007 VMAs performance? The heartbreaking "Piece of Me" responds to our discomfort: perhaps we've asked too much.

Well, this is unfortunate. While judges debate her child-visitation rights, Britney Spears has
released an album whose title seems to have been inspired by a major flirtini binge. On
Blackout, she's singing that she's "so damn high I can't come down," anticipating a night of
"dancing tabletop," and issuing a proclamation that's enough to make Sean Preston use
Jayden as a protective shield from Mommy: "Maybe I'm a freak, but I don't really... More >