Militant said:

Too many people involved on some of these tracks. Look at the production credits, most songs on there have been produced by at least three different people. At least one song has FOUR people credited for the production. Some of them have songwriting credits to six songwriters. It just seems like overkill. Most of Blackout was produced by Danja, on his own (5 tracks), and Bloodshy/Avant (who work as a songwriting/production duo) on a lot of the others.

Some of the songs on this album are just lost in the over-production. At least two songs I thought should have had drastically different production rather than the same 4/4 house beat that's on most of the album.

Yeah that at times is a big hinderance, back in 2002 when a-Ha did "Lifelines" there were producers all over the place, doing mixes, and all this stuff, a-ha felt it was too many hands on the project and lead singer Morten Harket felt about 5 songs didnt deserve his "singing" on them, the album was bloated at 15 songs, and you could hear the cuts that shouldve been bsides at best, though still a good album, but when you have a few of dead weight it hurts the best stuff

Militant said:

Too many people involved on some of these tracks. Look at the production credits, most songs on there have been produced by at least three different people. At least one song has FOUR people credited for the production. Some of them have songwriting credits to six songwriters. It just seems like overkill. Most of Blackout was produced by Danja, on his own (5 tracks), and Bloodshy/Avant (who work as a songwriting/production duo) on a lot of the others.

Some of the songs on this album are just lost in the over-production. At least two songs I thought should have had drastically different production rather than the same 4/4 house beat that's on most of the album.

Doesn't this happen often, though? They don't necessarily add much if anything to the track but are given credits anyway. Someone could say, hey put some flute on that "Criminal" track and bam, there's a production credit. If everyone knows a record is going to be a hit, they will toss out credits like that to get those people paid. Surely you already know that anyway so I'm just reiterating shit you already know, but still.

Point is, I haven't found this album to be overproduced. I've found it to be quite daring and pushes the top 40 dance pop genre envelope (note: I think Robyn and Roisin Murphy have been pushing it for years but they aren't top 40 and likely never will be). I think tracks like "I Wanna Go", "Inside Out", "Criminal", and "Til the World Ends" are pretty crazy tracks for someone like Britney.

I think this album will top Blackout for me, which is my favorite Brit album. I am glad she is moving out of corny music and is listening to more European pop now. THAAAANK god cuz American pop music is garbage.

Spinlight said:

Militant said:

Too many people involved on some of these tracks. Look at the production credits, most songs on there have been produced by at least three different people. At least one song has FOUR people credited for the production. Some of them have songwriting credits to six songwriters. It just seems like overkill. Most of Blackout was produced by Danja, on his own (5 tracks), and Bloodshy/Avant (who work as a songwriting/production duo) on a lot of the others.

Some of the songs on this album are just lost in the over-production. At least two songs I thought should have had drastically different production rather than the same 4/4 house beat that's on most of the album.

Doesn't this happen often, though? They don't necessarily add much if anything to the track but are given credits anyway. Someone could say, hey put some flute on that "Criminal" track and bam, there's a production credit. If everyone knows a record is going to be a hit, they will toss out credits like that to get those people paid. Surely you already know that anyway so I'm just reiterating shit you already know, but still.

Point is, I haven't found this album to be overproduced. I've found it to be quite daring and pushes the top 40 dance pop genre envelope (note: I think Robyn and Roisin Murphy have been pushing it for years but they aren't top 40 and likely never will be). I think tracks like "I Wanna Go", "Inside Out", "Criminal", and "Til the World Ends" are pretty crazy tracks for someone like Britney.

I think this album will top Blackout for me, which is my favorite Brit album. I am glad she is moving out of corny music and is listening to more European pop now. THAAAANK god cuz American pop music is garbage.

Yeah. It does happen. But it's new for a Britney album. Even on her last album, "Circus", 6 of the 12 songs were only credited to a single producer.

The actual input of all the credited producers is something we can't possibly know. But I definitely felt a couple of times that there was too many production ideas going on and that a few songs could have benefited from being a bit more stripped-down.

I feel a couple of tracks are over-produced. I wouldn't say the album is general is over-produced, but I do think there could have been some variation in the production styles.

Having said all that, I've only listened through twice so far. So there's still room for certain things to grow on me.

It isn't topping Blackout for me personally, but it's not far off. Definitely my second favorite Britney album.

This album actually doesn't sound too bad from what I heard so far.

Rolling Stone gives it 4 out 5 stars.

Britney Spears is pop music's stealth avant-gardist. For years, critics have dismissed her as a cipher with a wisp of a voice. But from the minute she burst on the scene — heralded by the keyboard power chords of ". . . Baby One More Time" — her music has steered bubblegum into weirder, woollier territory. "Toxic" was a mélange of Bollywood and spy-movie guitar; "Piece of Me" was an essay on 21st-century tabloid infamy crooned over 22nd-century club rhythms. Then there's this year's "Hold It Against Me," which dissolves into a furious dubstep breakdown — easily the most assaultive beat on the Hot 100 right now.

Femme Fatale may be Britney's best album; certainly it's her strangest. Conceptually it's straightforward: a party record packed with sex and sadness. Max Martin and Dr. Luke, the world's two biggest hitmakers, are responsible for seven of 12 songs: big melodies and bigger Eurodisco thumps. But other producers go nuts, tossing the kitchen sink at Britney. The Bloodshy-helmed "How I Roll" is sputtering, oddly beautiful techno. In "Big Fat Bass," Will.i.am turns Britney into a cyborg obsessed with low-end. ("The bass is getting bigger!" she exults.) On nearly every track, Britney's voice is twisted, shredded, processed, roboticized. Maybe this is because she doesn't have much of a voice; it's certainly because she, more than almost any other pop diva, is simply game. Femme fatale? Not so much. But say this for Britney: She's an adventuress.

http://www.rollingstone.c...e-20110314