The oversexed, estro-charged, de-buttoned burlesque sextet the Pussycat Dolls have returned to the top 10 ranks with their second studio album, Doll Domination.
A more apt title for the record would be Nicole Domination. Besides the Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins-produced summer smash "When I Grow Up," it's nearly impossible for an outside listener to gather that the Dolls are in fact a group of six, not a solo act. Magnificent siren Nicole Scherzinger leads most of the vocals; her sensuous pipes by far the album's crowning glory.
Domination includes collaborations with the likes of Snoop Dogg (who's back for another loosening of their proverbial "Buttons," Missy Elliott and R Kelly, who add their own distinct styles to an otherwise mediocre and generic pop CD.
The fact that the album has 16 tracks is a bit strange for a pop record, and in this particular case it does not work in the girls' favor. Sure, there's a great deal of catchy beats, word repetitions and artificial pop sounds to the point of excess, but several tracks in a row will only make listeners yearn for something fresh to soothe the ears.
"In Person," an upbeat and jazz-fused track that chronicles a woman's desire to confront her former lover in real life in an age of de-humanized breakups via text messages and Facebook, sounds like a Blu Cantrell b-side with a healthy dose of Duran Duran's "Notorious."
The undeniable Missy Elliott collaboration "Whatcha Think About That" urges young women to turn the tides of gender roles in their favor and behave in the fashion of the men who have wronged them.
"Tonight I'm gonna call you a thousand times/Tonight I'm gonna make up a thousand lies," sing the Dolls. "Play like Katy Perry and kiss on girls" chants Elliot later on in the track.
The Dolls also make several attempts at slower-paced balladry with "I Hate This Part," "Happily Never After" and the closing number "I'm Done," whose intimate, graceful demeanor grossly lacks the crackling sexuality the group has become synonymous with.
In general, these tracks serve as a testament to what is generally wrong with pop music and can be seen as a means to typecasting the Dolls as dance club remix queens.
All in all, reception of the album is sure to be mixed. With regards to pop records, it is cookie cutter.
But when considering the Dolls' past hits, if they play their cards right and release the right tracks as singles, they will never sell higher. And in the pop genre, what could be better?
