Customer Reviews

Ten (Incl. Bonus Track)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If Lessons To Be Learned was a coffeehouse album, then Ten is a club album with its synths and electronic accompaniment to the other instruments. Think debut oddball "Save The Lies," only with more excess and less innocence, and you'll get the idea. There isn't a song likely to match Gabriella's biggest success, "Sweet About Me," nor does anything come close to topping her best, "Awkward Game," but Ten offers plenty of standouts and no obvious filler.

"On A Mission," "Love Me Cos," "Robots," "Boys," "Glue," "Let Me Know" and "Superman" are all excellent with "Love Me Cos" in particular having the most potential of being a big hit. The soulful charm of "Let Me Know" and the seductive simplicity of "Superman" recall what worked so well on the debut and close out the album on a tremendous high note. As for the remainder, "Hearts Don't Lie" and "Superhot" are mindless fun, and "What If You Knew" is cute but just okay. "Defender" doesn't stand among the best ballads she's done, while "Invisible Girl" steps into Britney territory and suffers for doing so. A bonus remix of "Sweet About Me" is included that's best left ignored, as it's as pointless as every other remix that has ever been.

Ten may not be what its name implies, but it delivers more often than not and in the end is a very good album. On a personal note, I sincerely wish only the best for Ms. Cilmi and that she have a long and successful career. It is truly a pleasure to listen to such a wonderful voice, and whatever path she takes next, I will be more than happy to follow. And Gabriella, I do want to. You're amazing.

The beautiful and talented Gabriella Cilmi returns to the scene with her second album release "Ten" and it blows me away! At first I'll admit I was a bit skeptical of the new album after loving "Lessons To Be Learned: UK Edition" but once I got hold of "Ten" it was quickly added to my I Tunes Library and constantly gets heavy airplay. Let me go through this wonderful album song by song: First up is "On A Mission" which is an upbeat unique pop tune that you can move to. Second is "Hearts Don't Lie" and it is also a track that will get you moving as it has a strong uptempo beat. Third is "What If You Knew" where Gabriella starts to slow it down a bit. Nice Lyrics on this track. Fourth is maybe my favorite track on the album: "Love Me Cos You Want To" - it has a nice smooth beat that only Gabriella can produce. Fifth is "Defender" and it follows suit by being another smooth softer tune with nice lyrics. "Robots" has a kind of electronic feel it is the sixth tune on the CD and I really like the beat on this track as well and of course Gabriella's great voice shines through again (like on all the tracks). "Superhot" is the next track - this one has a dance floor feel to it, another great track. "Boys" is another track that I could call my favorite if I had to choose - I absolutely love the deep beat and I think Gabriella's voice shines the most on this one. Ninth on the CD is "Invisible Girl" - another great upbeat-ish unique pop track. These next three tracks also could be on my list of favorite tracks from this album - they are "Glue", "Let Me Know", and "Superman." I love all of these - the all have a smooth pop/jazz feel to them. The final track is the Twenty Ten Version of "Sweet About Me" which is good but I prefer the original from "Lessons To Be Learned", this is one that could be played in a dance club. OVERALL: Great album Gabriella! Can't Wait for the next one!

Donald Isaac
Smooth Jazz & Alternative 99.3 FM WBWH Operations Manager at Bluffton University
Host of "The Chillout Sessions" - Northwest Ohio's first home for Smooth Jazz, Smooth Vocals, and Chill Music

**Originally posted on "#1 Hits From Another Planet" - 3/25/10**

I love a good pop album, even though (more often than not) they're known for being pretty uneven. Working with a hoard of producers almost guarantees a somewhat disjointed album, but luckily on Gabriella Cilmi's second release the strengths far outweigh the weaknesses.

1. On A Mission - One of the best singles released so far this year, this is a heady brew of 80's synths, girl-power rock and "Oh Mickey" style chants. The album version's even better than the single. Pure cheese, but flawlessly done. 10/10

2. Hearts Don't Lie - The one Xenomania track on the album, and hyped because of it. It's got a funky sound let down just a tiny bit by the chorus. It's still completely single-worthy. 9/10

3. What If You Knew - Floating on a bed of dramatic, swooping synths, this simple melody becomes quite addicting. It's at this point that it's clear that Cilmi has fully committed to her new pop sound. Her gritty voice fits this perfectly. 9/10

4. Love Me Cos You Want To - Another epic pop song. The verses, especially have a classic melancholy disco sound to them. It's the type of single Kylie would die for, and she'd be lucky to have it. The production is stunning. 10/10

5. Defender - The first dip in album quality. It's a sleepy ballad enhanced a bit by some nice military-sounding drums. The melody's too repetitive without much payoff. 6/10

6. Robots - Back to the fun pop sound of the earlier tracks. The chorus here is especially nice, both melodically and lyrically. There are parts when she's using falsetto that sound eerily like a young Janet Jackson. 9/10

7. Superhot - Here's where everything comes together. The frantic, funky verses, the theatrical bridge, and the pop-til-you-drop chorus. It's the album's centerpiece, and rightfully so. 10/10

8. Boys - A slightly more subdued dance track with a great chorus where Cilmi comes close to yodeling. Not one of the best tracks, but certainly an interesting and catchy departure. 8/10

9. Invisible Girl - A little noisy without a real memorable melody, this has a more urban feel to it that suits Cilmi's voice but isn't as successful as it should be. 7/10

10. Glue - The second track on the album that could be considered more of a ballad, this is heaps better than Defender. Still not the strongest song, but it at least has a sense of urgency to it. 8/10

11. Let Me Know - A funky singalong that feels too old-fashioned beside the rest of the tracks. It's indicative of how the last portion of the album plays it a little safe and is less interesting because of it. 7/10

12. Superman - Hearkens back to the sound of the first album. It's pleasant, but not particularly memorable. I do like the laid-back sound of her voice, though. 7/10

13. Sweet About Me (Twenty Ten Version) - Back to the pop sound of the first half, as this hit single (from her first album) is electro-ized. It works surprisingly well, though I feel like this song could work well in any genre. 9/10

Album Grade: 8.4/10

Este es un disco simplemente genial, tiene muy buen contenido lírico y unas canciones muy completas y elaboradas. Vale mucho la pena comprarlo GABRIELLA TIENE UNA GRAN VOZ!

Australian songstress Gabriella Cilmi released her debut CD "Lessons to be learned" in 2008, a mix of Duffy-style vintage Soul/Pop and Blondie-style New wave. The lovely "Sweet about me" was a huge UK hit from the album. Since then, she's developed a liking for electronic music, Donna Summer's "Four seasons of love" in particular, she has stated in interviews.

The result is "Ten", filled with high octane Synth/Dance numbers like "On a mission", "Hearts don't lie", and "Love me cos you want to" (sounding like a Britney clone).

Slowing things down and providing some sonic variety are the Synth ballads "Defender", "Robots", "Boys", "Glue", and "Superman", though truth be told, they don't do much to raise the album above average.

The problem is everything is same-sounding with no killer track standing out. Standing above the others a bit are "Invisible girl", "Let me know", and a Synth-filled remix of "Sweet about me (Twenty ten version)" (sounding like something by Depeche Mode). It's rather telling that one of the best tracks here featured on her debut originally, and in a much better version.

It's such a shame really, as her debut showed much promise. "I've never been a diva, but I won't settle for second best" she sings on "Invisible girl". Pity she didn't apply the same to the music here which is second rate at best!