Three takes on Lily Allen’s It’s Not Me It’s You. Yes, three!!!

TAKE ONE, by Helen Szczupak:

Lily Allen is back with the follow up to her debut album Alright Still, and the highly anticipated album It’s Not Me It’s You comes at a time when there really is no escaping her.

She’s all over our papers on a daily basis, for reasons disassociated with her musical abilities. But love her or loathe her there is no doubt that this level of coverage by the tabloids has led to much well-earned promotion for her new album and has also provided inspiration for many of her songs.

It’s Not Me It’s You is a much more grown up offering than Alright Still, which takes on many a controversial subject such as drugs, sex, September 11th, racism, religion and homophobia. Just how much of a risk this is, only time will tell…

Several of these tracks will therefore no doubt be unsuitable for general release as singles in the charts, which is a shame as she could be limiting herself choice-wise, but it certainly creates a talking point. Overall the songs are catchy with memorable choruses that will weld themselves to your memory upon first listen.

Album opener ‘Everyone’s At It’ is a ditty about the drug-taking public. From politicians to teenagers, Lily suggests that people need to admit they have a problem and that it seems to be widespread. This track will no doubt not be a single release with all of those drug references as half of the song would have to be blanked out, if you see what we are getting at here. Nonetheless it is a statement-making track that sets the general tone and pace for the album. Definitely one to leave an impression and get those ears pricking up.

Lily’s first single offering and current chart topper ‘The Fear’ was certainly a wise choice for release. It is a good indicator of what to expect from the album, is one of the best tracks and shows progression from the last album. The subject is very typical of Lily Allen, charting the scenarios of what it is like to be famous and in the limelight; “I’ll take off my clothes, and it will be shameless/’Cos everyone knows that’s how you get famous”. It draws on her experiences of fame so far and points a finger at the tabloids.

Another stand out track is ‘Who’d Have Known’ which bares more than a vague resemblance to Take That’s ‘Shine’. The sentiment of the song is about a friendship which becomes something more, it’s certainly catchy and shows a softer side to Lily. ‘Fuck You’ seems very familiar upon first listen. The intro sounds exactly like The Carpenters’ ‘Close To You’ but it touches on a subject matter that The Carpenters would not have touched with a bargepole. It discusses controversial issues like racism, being homophobic and being all-round distastefully minded. Morally, the concept is a great idea, but by this point we are feeling a bit like Lily is going a little over the top with the airing of her views and dissing her acquaintances.

‘Chinese’ is not out of the ordinary; it certainly won’t be making waves in the charts. What is warming about this song is its honesty and simplicity with the kind of lyrics that first made us stop and pay attention to Lily Allen. “You’ll make me beans on toast and a nice cup of tea/We’ll get a Chinese and watch TV”. It’s lyrics like this that remind us of classics like ‘LDN’.

All round it is a great pop record, and although we are all for artists writing and singing about personal experiences and getting to know them through their music, we cannot help but feel that Lily Allen has taken it a small step too far. Telling a guy that he has no chance; ex-boyfriend hating; talking about the absence of her father; men who have failed to please her in the bedroom; political issues; discussing whether God “Has ever been done for tax evasion” or “taken smack or cocaine”, it seems that perhaps Lily has become too focused on controversial issues and airing her dirty laundry.

Musically, the album is spot on. There is no fault that can be found other than it is perhaps (not lyrically) playing it a little safe, which is what makes it not quite as thrilling as her debut album which boasted marvels such as ‘LDN’ and ‘Smile’. It touches on a slightly more electro sound than her previous releases, but that isn’t to say that it has lost tune or melody. In fact this is arguably far catchier than her previous work (in a get-stuck-in-your-head sense) and demonstrates her vocal ability far more, showcasing a more angelic side to her voice.

There are some great pop songs on here that will no doubt become successful chart releases for her and the album will no doubt sell millions of copies. However, maybe this album has just lost that magic that we knew and loved Lily Allen for in the past.

TAKE TWO, by Kirstie McCrum:

British music’s enfant terrible, the view from here seems to suggest that La Allen’s gone from a cheeky-chopped, trainer-wearing, anti-cool urbanista ready to cock a snook at all comers to the lean demure socialite that Agyness Deyn would never deign to be.

Since 2006’s Alright Still, it seems she’s spent more time in the tabloids than the recording studio , but here is an album to refute all evidence to the contrary.

Where you fall on It’s Not Me, It’s You largely depends on how you felt about Alright, Still.

Having once declared herself as not being in music for the long haul, it’s hard to look at any of her recorded output with seriousness – if she doesn’t respect the art, why should it respect her?

That said, It’s Not Me, It’s You is a whole lot of fun.

Single ‘The Fear’ has the requisite mix of tuneful pap and yoof attitude, mocking the moral pausity of the diet-engorged elite; “I’m not a saint, and I’m not a sinner/Everything’s cool so long as I’m getting thinner.”

Elsewhere, the controversial ‘Everybody’s At It’ has galvanised the Daily Hate Mail and the like into a cold outrage thanks to its assertion that drugs are everywhere. Which just goes to show that there’s always someone ready to be offended, even by throwaway pop.

That saidm the bizarrely politicised ‘Fuck You (Very Much)’ is a sure sign that Allen has made an attempt to mature, even if it doesn’t pay off as such.

Apparently targetting the BNP, it seeks to exclude them from British society, thus removing their narrow politics from the fray. A very convincing argument, but the execution, “Fuck you, very, very much/Cause your words don’t translate/And it’s getting quite late/so please don’t stay in touch” - leaves a lot to be desired if it is intended to be an adult take on the subject.

By and large, the “I hate myself and want to diet” ethos of the debut has been channelled in an infinitely more grown up direction, slipping only occasionally (’Not Fair’ is about a gent who ahem… underperforms in bed, one can only imagine it’s autobiographical).

Also gone is the cod-reggae over-exertion of Alright, Still, replaced with the smooth sheen of electronica.

The question remains, at 23, is Lily knocking on a bit to still be wearing the ‘MySpace mouth’ hat?

She was a young pup of 19 when her first musical murmurings were committed to record, and in some ways her tales of seedy nights out in clubs and knocking back pub leches are still pertinent and on show here even after her extensive remodelling.

But in some ways it seems less honest, and more likely to be purposely pointing in a certain direction.

On It’s Not Me, It’s You, if you look past the faux-substance, it really seems that in swapping her oversized trainers for peep-toe Manolos, Lily has sold her scampish soul for style.

TAKE THREE, by Jiten Karia:

It would be fair to say that Lily Allen is probably better known worldwide for her exposure outside of music rather than in it. Her mouth has started as many songs as it has high profile spats. Still, a little bit of a rant at the likes of Katy Perry, Amy Winehouse and Cheryl Cole never did any real harm now, did it?

Three years after MySpace launched Alright, Still, Lily Allen returns with It’s Not Me, It’s You, a mix of power-pop, free for all language and no-nonsense song topics. Not a particularly huge departure from what would be expected from Ms Allen, but still with a distinctive charm in each track.

Perhaps the biggest relief from listening to the album first time through is a lack of electronics on the vocals. During the Grammys of last week, Death Cab for Cutie set out the stall against dehumanised voices in music, and to be frank, the style is now (unofficially) overused. So that’s one point for this album so far.

As far as pop albums go, there’s nothing new about the sound. Drums, piano, a bit of guitar and some studio magic create all the soft melodies and catchy tunes that’ll remain in your mind for a while, but it’s the lyrics and delivery that sets aside this record amongst the massive singer-songwriter market.

The album opens with a stinging attack on celebrity drug culture with ‘Everyone’s At It’, a socially charged track laden dealing with drug use, depression and generally the crap going on with modern youth. Not the cheeriest start, but only a glimpse back to ‘LDN’ or ‘Smile’ shows that her words are masked by the brightest of tunes.

And this is precisely the case with lead single, ‘The Fear’. Celebrity status comes under attack yet again, but as she well mentions, “We’re onto a winner”- no doubt a testimony to the predicted commercial success of the album. The track isn’t particularly strong, but it is still going down a storm in the charts.

The lowest point of the album is ‘Fuck You’, supposedly an anti-George Bush song. The track is just a bit late and childish. It is perhaps too blunt in its message and the choral vocals grate on the ears, made worse over the bridge, seemingly provided by Alvin and the Chipmunks.

As a whole, the album isn’t breaking boundaries, but provides a decent number of songs with hooks to sing along to. Highlights include ‘22’ and ‘Chinese’, essentially a recount of night at home with a take away.

It may not have the eclectic touches from Alright, Still, but It’s Not Me, It’s You is almost pitch perfect as the modern pop album. Angst, celebrity and drugs- need I say more?