After we’ve watched Alicia Keys evolve as an artist, it’s worth asking what exactly we should be expecting from her. We should then definitely be wondering if her latest release The Element of Freedom lives up to those expectations.
Is this album dripping with piano driven, soul infused ballads with ripping mid-tempos sung with an undeniable soul flavor and lyrics so genius they deserve to be quoted randomly in conversation? To a certain extent it is. But somehow, it falls short merely skimming the surface of the musical and artistic growth we’d expect, although the album is littered with some great music.
While not everything on the album is golden, there are several tracks that stand out amongst the other obvious fillers.The cheeky disco-inspired “This Bed” sports a catchy melody with a great amount of musical individuality. “Unthinkable (I’m Ready)” is undoubtedly the best track on the entire project.
With a melodic backdrop, expertly produced by rapper Drake, Alicia serenades us while wearing her heart on her sleeve and creating a mature look at introspection that just works on several levels. The hard-hitting duet with Beyonce Knowles titled “Put it in a Love Song”, finds us with two big voices that meld together perfectly. The classic musicality and vocal strength of Keys is present accompanied by the heavy drum ladden strength that is Beyonce. No one would’ve suspected that this track would work, but it does. It’s surprisingly has “hit” written all over it.
The Element of Freedom is not wow-worthy or boundary pushing but is still a step in the right direction for Keys. I’m not totally disappointed in this but it definitely misses the mark in some way. Personally, I believe she hasn’t released an album that wowed me since Diary but even still, she manages to always captivate me in some way and hold my attention longer than most. For that, I commend her.
Unthinkable (I’m Ready)
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Album Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
