As Selena Gomez matures, shedding her “Disney Girl” persona, her music matures with her. From singing cookie-cutter, cutesy jams in promotions for Disney to belting out dance jams with adult themes, Selena Gomez shows she’s a woman in her new album, Stars Dance. She’s dated Bieber, smoked a bong on Spring Breakers and now, her album celebrates her entry into womanhood with dance anthems galore. What is womanhood like to Gomez? Dancing, dancing and more dancing.
She only takes a breath on the final song to explore the past with sappy, love lyrics. If Gomez is sad, it’s not really apparent through the production of her tracks as they all possess an upbeat quality that’ll keep you dancing through the tears. But while each song is danceworthy, they can stand on their own, ready to get you into their own specific mood.
It’s pop music, but it doesn’t follow the formula we hear every summer with predictable bridges and choruses with a simple little beat in the background. If you thought “Come & Get It” was great, just wait until you hear the other tracks.
Some of the key songs (there are a lot) that make Stars Dance a really magnificent pop album contain Gomez’s sweet voice that’s easy on the ears and grinding, thematic beats and melodies that dabble in other genres. “Birthday” which has Gomez shouting “Tell ‘em that it’s my birthday,” is just a fun and nonsensical party jam with interesting beats and synthesizer growls. Following, “Slow Down,” with a steady dance beat, has a hip-grinding chorus and shows Gomez’s venture into love: “You know I’m good with mouth-to-mouth recitation / Breathe me in / Breathe me out.”
Adding to the fun, “Save the Day” and “B.E.A.T” are all about the beat as the first features thunderous drum thuds paired with synth climaxes and techno beats while the latter sounds very similar to Dev’s “Bass Down Low.” There’s even a semi-drum solo in case you were running out of breath from dancing so much.
The title track, “Stars Dance” is dark in essence and beautifully produced, which encapsulates the entire album, essentially. With a symphony of violins, synth beats and electronic trills, the track is cinematic in nature with visuals of starry skies and outer space.
Sampling other genres, Gomez follows a current trend of using reggaeton in her music, specially the club jam “Like A Champion.” It adds something different the album of mainly electronic beats. And of course, “Come & Get It” controversially features, as Gomez said, a “Middle Eastern” and “tribal” feel.
With a dark sexiness, Gomez created a club banger with Stars Dance. From the sensuality, the synths, the melodies and the catchy hooks, everything about the album makes you want to get up and go wild. Of course, you have to overlook the mediocre lyrics and just lose yourself in the production of the album. It’s a brilliant pop album ready to take over Summer 2013.