From the moment Alicia Keys dropped onto the music scene in 2001, one thing was clear, the girl could write a killer hook. With a few simple words stretched out to blasting piano underscored intensity, “I keep on fallin, in and out of love with you,” Alicia Keys roared onto radio with an album (“Songs in A Minor”) that would garner her both critical praise and a slew of awards. It also seems to be the only real lyrical idea she will ever write, but that’s not as bad as it sounds.
eagerly anticipated album “As I Am,” and it’s both strikingly different than her past two albums and strikingly similar. Those seeking out more of Keys’ piano driven ballads about heartbreak, newfound love, and euphoric romance will be pleased to know that Keys has delivered fourteen songs with her signature killer hooks that seem radio friendly and original at the same time.
Fortunately, for her slightly repetitive songwriting skills, “No One,” where Keys practically screams her devotion to a man that will never be matched, you realize that even when she’s pushing the limits of her vocal range (which she is doing to beautiful effect in this single) she’s fully in command.
What makes her music accessible is the simple stream of emotions that she writes with. Her choruses often consist of a string of three or four words, repeated with different notes and they send shivers through your body. It doesn’t seem to matter that she employs slews of clichés because the way she performs them is breathtaking and she fully commits. This is most true on “Sure Looks Good To Me” which finds her singing with defiance, “Don’t rain on my parade.” There’s nothing lyrically original in this statement, but through some magic she makes it feel like you are hearing it for the first time.
Even though I would love to see Keys branch out into uncharted territory with her subject matter, there’s no denying that what she does, she does well. Clichéd? At times, yes. Enjoyable? Always
