Beyoncé waited for the last moment to unveil 2013′s finest pop album. It arrived too late to enter our top ten lists, but just in time to own the year.
That Beyoncé was able to keep a project of this scale completely under wraps is one of the most impressive tricks of her career, but the real feat is the album itself, a candid, confrontational work that dares to cut against the singer’s carefully cultivated goddess image to reveal the opinionated, imperfect woman underneath.
Indeed, at its dizzying zenith, beyoncé is a loaded fusion of generosity and self-empowerment. or perhaps, more accurately, it finds self-empowerment in generosity.
This is her best album, more textured than its predecessors in both sound and content.
In my estimation, when critically examined, BEYONCÉ functions as a highly successful feminist manifesto.
A tour through Beyoncé’s backstory, a meditation on Third Wave feminism and a rejection of perfection, Beyoncé is the singer at her rawest, realest, and most personal, with a sound deeper and darker than ever before.
By far her most experimental and multi-layered album.
Beyoncé is better than good, slickly packaged, created with the best of intentions yet still comes off as a postmodern mash of hubris, sincerity and gloss. It will be a hit regardless.
Beyoncé's surprise album, BEYONCÉ, is X-rated, sensuous and thoughtful ... And Queen Bey's vocal gifts put the rest of 2013's pop stars in the shade.
Beyonce is an album that knows what it's about, and it smacks of confidence - it's an artist on top of their game.
If there’s one thing you can take from BEYONCÉ, it’s that you never have to feel “bored” as she describes in “Ghost.” There’s always room to innovate.
It trafficks specifically in lost arts like sequencing, pacing, and mastering. It’s not concerned with moving units. It’s concerned with Beyoncé’s self-exploration, in a complicated, incredibly intriguing way.
Musically, it's the same kind of electro R&B with which radio is already awash - in large part because it's produced by the same small coterie of hip producers, with Timbaland appearing to take the most prominent role amongst the likes of Detail, Jerome Harmon, Pharrell Williams and Ryan Tedder.
BEYONCÉ is a testament to the singer's potential as an artist. Launched by surprise on a Friday, this project impacted the way albums were released and the idea of visual albums, as well as showing a more experimental side of Beyoncé that makes not only her voice shine on this album.
Pretty Hurts (10/10)
Haunted (9.8/10)
Drunk In Love (8.8/10)
Blow (8.5/10)
No Angel (8.3/10)
Partition (9/10)
Jealous (8.2/10)
Rocket (8.2/10)
Mine (9.2/10)
XO (9/10)
Flawless (9.5/10)
Superpower ... read more
REVISITING BEYONCÉ’S DISCOGRAPHY #1
In anticipation of Beyoncé’s new album “RENAISSANCE”, I decided to revisit two of her albums, starting with her self titled album. And while it’s not a perfect album by any means, it’s just so enjoyable and is filled with great highlights, production, and vocal performances throughout. This album has has also aged pretty well, and it has proven to be a very influential album in music.
Fav Tracks: Pretty ... read more
2013 albums (8/10)
incredible.
top 5 songs:
Haunted
Drunk In Lovew
Partition
XO
Rocket
worst song: Superpower (so sad this was the worst)
this is my third entry into beyonce's discography and with every new album i get to experience a new layer of her and her artistry. although taylor swift is my all time favourite artist, beyonce is the BEST artist i've ever listened to. not only did she change the music industry to release new music on a friday but this truly feels like her feminist manifesto. with lemonade being an exploration into her marriage and her relationship, and renaissance being a reclamation of the dance genre. ... read more
1 | Pretty Hurts 4:17 | 87 |
2 | Haunted 6:09 | 90 |
3 | Drunk in Love 5:23 feat. JAY-Z | 90 |
4 | Blow 5:09 | 87 |
5 | No Angel 3:48 | 82 |
6 | Partition 5:19 | 92 |
7 | Jealous 3:04 | 84 |
8 | Rocket 6:31 | 83 |
9 | Mine 6:18 feat. Drake | 84 |
10 | XO 3:35 | 91 |
11 | ***Flawless 4:10 feat. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie | 87 |
12 | Superpower 4:36 feat. Frank Ocean | 78 |
13 | Heaven 3:50 | 82 |
14 | Blue 4:26 feat. Blue Ivy | 86 |
#1 | / | Billboard |
#1 | / | Pretty Much Amazing |
#1 | / | Vibe |
#8 | / | Variety |
#11 | / | Gigwise |
#18 | / | Consequence of Sound |
#40 | / | Tiny Mix Tapes |