Britney Spears - Circus

Jive

Rating: 3.5/5

You can't underestimate the amount of goodwill people find in their reserves when they can tell someone is desperately trying to get themselves back on track. And it's on this wave that Britney currently surfs, buoyed by her rather excellent last album Blackout, released amid the turmoil of a very public breakdown during which she lost her marriage, children and, most visibly, her hair.

On the fourth track of Circus, she announces her intention as a voiceover plays on the intro – "Our very own pop princess, now queen of pop, has a special announcement." The ex-queen of pop Madonna is all over this record in terms of influence. Britney sings like her, dresses like her and shadows her authority like an erudite stalker. But the hits are uniquely Britney. 'Womanizer' is a monster of a song, as good if not better than 'Gimme More' or 'Piece Of Me'. 'Kill The Lights', a hate-letter to the paparazzi, is also excellent. Lyrically, she tackles 'The Britney Economy', a multi-million industry of selling pictures of the star and gossip to the tabloids: "All the flashing, trying to cash in, hurts my eyes/ All the poses, out of focus, I despise/ Eff me over, your exposure, not the best/ You want me bad, I want you out, release this stress." While not as blatant as the personal commentary on the, well, circus, that her life became on Blackout, she doesn't shy away from her 'personal troubles' either. 'Blur' seems to reflect on the night a seemingly drugged-up Britney locked herself in a bathroom with her children and was eventually carted away to hospital strapped to a stretcher after police and medics intervened.

But by a mile, the best track here is 'Trouble', a song oddly sidelined on Circus. An iTunes pre-order bonus track, 'Trouble' is brave, hypnotic and melancholic, an almost perfect electro-pop tune with a synth line that echoes The Streets' 'Blinded By The Lights'. Perhaps it's being so different and so non-Britney is the only reason for its relegation. 'Out From Under', 'Mannequin', 'Mmm Papi', 'If You Seek Amy' (which appears to be a silly title masquerading as 'if you're sick of me') are all a bit rubbish, but if you can forgive that then, yeah, she's back. But at what cost?

Download: 'Womanizer', 'Circus', 'Trouble'