‘chemistry’ by Kelly Clarkson - A Review
Welcome back, Kelly Clarkson - it’s been a while. One of modern pop’s greatest voices returns from hiatus with an album that plums the deepest depths of love & heartbreak. Her newfound career as a TV host hasn’t dulled her abilities one iota, thankfully, and chemistry is the timely reminder of just what a powerhouse she is.
If you’re going to go big when opening your first new album in a while, go big. The somewhat ironically titled 'skip this part' is a monstrous number packed densely, reaching high for the heavens, setting the tone with determination. All facets of her divorce are going to be on open display, proudly and loudly. Where Adele retreated inwards with ‘30’, Clarkson burst outwards with ‘chemistry’, ensuring the energy is always there, everything stated loud and clear. Expect some barnstorming, door-kicking songs of self-love, some more mellow musings and a few sadder numbers that’ll have a big seismic impact. It’s not a perfect album, but it’s a great, personal body of work that showcases Kelly Clarkson’s talent en masse.
As an album, it works well as a collection of individual songs about love and heartbreak, with varying degrees of effectiveness. No matter the overall quality of the songs themselves, Clarkson delivers them with the arresting aplomb that’s been a hallmark of her singing career. Even if you feel your interest waning, it’s quickly recaptured with some stellar vocal work that sometimes stretches your belief in what’s physically possible.
Perhaps one of the only major drawbacks is that when songs, like 'skip this part', are practically bursting at the seams with raw emotion, the production and arrangement turn the energy up to 11 and keep it there; it leaves little room to breathe. It’s an album that risks feeling a bit overstuffed, lacking restraint. This is evidenced in the production, which occasionally finds itself sitting in a strange middle-ground between RnB-influenced and 80s-influenced pop sounds.
Given the context of how and when this album was written, it’s understandable that there’s so much for Clarksonfor to Clarkson to say. Pop artists that experience a high level of emotional upheaval are entitled to a project of pure self-direction, and Clarkson makes great use of this notion. While as a whole, the album doesn’t always feel seamless, the individual songs are polished gems, with a variety of styles and nods to other genres on display.
And then Kelly Clarkson opens her mouth to sing and any concerns of pacing are instantly forgotten. It is a magnetic masterclass of a vocal performance across 14 songs, imbuing an otherwise fine batch of pop songs with an almost otherworldly level of emotion. She allows her voice to carry so many emotions all at once, holding stronger than ever as she belts some of the most ambitious vocal passages in recent memory. I’m highlighting the gospel-blooded ‘me’ as the exemplar - it’s the kind of tune that’ll leave craters if you’re not prepared, but it’s by no means the only one on this record.
‘chemistry’ is a personal project that’s content to explore all sides of love and subsequent separation, warts and all. In one fell swoop, Clarkson has reaffirmed her stance as one of America’s classiest pop acts and delivered an uneven but blisteringly emotional record that, like her iconic voice, is impossible to keep down.