Critic of Music

Vocal Range: E3 - A5 - F#6
Vocal Rating: B-
Vocal Type: Light Lyric Soprano (3 Octaves)
Recommended Listenings: No Enemiesz, Hideaway

Positives: Great connection between all ranges of the voice, creating great ease throughout ever register. A great mixed voice allows her to reach up to G#5 without any hints of strain, while the head voice is flawlessly connected to her chest voice and can ascend to F#6 without issue. The head voice is light and feminine. The lower register though under utilized and not extensive, does not seem to illustrate any technical issues. Solid breath control allows to her to perform dance routines and still hit G5's and G#5's without the pitch suffering (see Hideaway and No Enemiesz live). Good dynamic control (What is Love)

Negatives: A strange twang to her voice becomes apparent in some chest notes which can sound like tension, and vibrato isn't utilized very often.

Living For Love - The opening number lays down the groundwork, but doesn't seem to life the album up very high. 6/10

Devil Pray - Typical Madge, pulling in some expected Christian references. The sleek chorus is an instant highlight, but the energy gets sucked out by a lonely acoustic guitar. 7.5/10

Ghosttown - "You're all that I can trust / Everyone ran away" Madonna croons on track No.3. Madonna sounds like she believes the song, to some extent. Like the first two songs, Ghosttown feels a bit factory pressed, with the stipulation that they're all missing something production-wise. 6/10

Unapologetic Bitch - Madonna tosses out the sleek and lackluster pop production for some reggae influence. This sounds far more genuine than the preceding tracks, which for Madonna might be a blessing or curse being the most genuine as a "bitch." Unfortunately, the song is still a bore. 5/10


Illuminati - "Everybody in this party's shining like illuminati," along with the very direct name addressing - Beyoncé, Steve Jobs, Obama and Gaga for starts - help construct the first truly effective Rebel Heart track. The production is dark, Madge's delivery is stone cold, and Illuminati ultimately steals the show. Madonna actually sounds engaged. 8.5/10

Bitch I'm Madonna (feat. Nicki Minaj) - The secondy 'bitchy' track shows off more of what Madonna does best - sound current. The trap sounds and the cries of "go hard or go home" paired up with Nicki Minaj's strong verse present Rebel Heart with a potential hit. 8/10

Hold Tight - The horns in the 2 previous tracks are scrapped for this pulsing drum track. It could be a bit bigger with the production, but Rebel Heart seems to feel more comfortable in minimalism. 7.5/10

Joan of Arc - Rebel Heart's trap onslaught is halted by the guitar strumming Joan of Arc. The verses seem laughable at first but once Madonna sings "I don't wanna talk about it right now," you're hit with a feeling of "oh shit, she's serious." The metaphor, production and feelings are strong, but the lyrics and delivery simply aren't. Joan of Arc finishes having accomplished most, but not all of its goals. 7/10

Iconic (feat. Chance the Rapper and Mike Tyson) - Rebel Heart has moved back to the party room. The gritty and pulsing synths of Iconic are addictive. 9/10

HeartBreak City - After going to the 3AM night club Iconic, HeartBreak City is the last place someone would want to go. But here we are. This is simply the wrong place to put a ballad. 4.5/10

Vocal Range: Bb2 - F#5 - C6 [Bb6]
Vocal Type: Light-Lyric Soprano [3 Octaves and 1 note]
Vocal Rating: C

Positives: Instantly identifiable voice, with a fast vibrato and original rasp contributing to this. Able to sing complex melisma with great agility (see the head voice riff in Elastic Heart). Her low notes are not hit by lowing the larynx and have a dark quality to them, though they are easily the weakest part of her range. The mid-range is strong, as well as chest voice notes up to C5. Her head voice is sweet and feminine. Her phrasing and tone are original and instantly identifiable.

Proficient with legato phrases. Her voice is able to adapt to different genres in the pop field, such as disco, pop/rock and EDM. Able to execute growls without strain.

Heartbeat Song: Clarkson and her promotional team have both admitted that Heartbeat Song was birthed in order to re-introduce Clarkson to pop radio after Catch My Breath, but even then "Heartbeat" is a big disappointment. Solid verses, but the chorus and bridge are abysmal. This single had to be stuck on the album, but an opening position is deceitful as to what the rest of the album has to offer. 3/10

Invincible: A soaring power ballad, albeit, with bland lyrics. The album is quickly back on track. 8/10

Someone: A melody that sounds strikingly similar to this Kesha song. It's an uneventful song, but it still feels worthy enough to be on the album. It's somber enough to attract some fans. 6.5/10

Take You High: A sea of synths propel Clarkson to her most legitimate EDM sound yet. Crescendoing drums in the pre-chorus lead to disconnected syllables flying high above synths and accented down beats. Unfortunately though, it feels slightly unfinished. 7.5/10

Piece By Piece: Piece By Piece definitely deserves to name Clarkson's 7th studio album. Beautiful sentiment, harmonies and phrasing along with a strong drum line create a powerful Because of You sibling. Clarkson takes stabs at her father while praising her husband's love towards herself and her daughter. Clarkson sounds proud and restored and heartbroken all at once. It's a fascinating track that commands the attention of the listener. One of the highlights of Clarkson's songwriting career. 10/10

Run Run Run (feat. John Legend): A somber piano introduces a rather interesting opening line for Clarkson: "I wonder how your body tastes." Well. That's an unusual line from America's sweetheart. Clarkson and Legend sound great together, with their airy and beautiful vibratos matching perfectly. They share the same ideas in terms of phrasing and delivery, which makes Run Run Run an even more beautiful song. The final chorus brings a stormy drum and guitar line into the mix, leading to a dark and stunning finale. 10/10 

I Had a Dream: Clarkson sounds like a rebellious leader here: "I had a dream that we were born a generation to behold." This deep in the album, it's either standout or be filler, but Dream fits somewhere in the middle of those categories. It's far different from any other sounds on the album, and it's definitely good, but it's not the magnum opus either. 7.5/10

Let Your Tears Fall: Clarkson sounds forgiving, an unusual sound for a woman who has taken a lot of pride in being "Miss Independent." This Sia penned track sounds distinctly Clarkson, with an addictive Coldplay-esque post-chorus. 8/10

Tightrope: A piano and string song brings a halt to the albums pace. The theme begs for a beautiful music video with tightrope and all, but Tightrope seems to fall off slowly and dramatically, especially compared to the rest of the album so far. 6/10

War Paint: A title like war paint just screams "standout track," but War Paint is anything but that. It sounds unfinished, with gaps in the production creating a lackluster dance track. Props for the idea and theme, but other than that "Paint" brings no new colors to the album. 6/10

Dance With Me: The first truly successful dance-pop track of the album. Dance With Me could have easily found its way on to Taylor Swift's 1989 with its pulsing synths and catchy cuplet "When the music starts and the lights go down / We will all be found." The calls of "Come on and dance with me" are cute enough to be used at high school proms across the globe. Potential single right here, but it will likely be overlooked. 8/10

Nostalgic: Funnily enough, Nostalgic brings in some genuine 80's nostalgia. The melody at points sounds dangerously close to Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, but that fantastic chorus convinces you to overlook this flaw. "Nostalgic" will probably remain safe as an album track, but an album highlight regardless. 10/10

Good Goes the Bye: The lyrics are pretty cheesy with its lines like "drip goes the sink." Good Goes the Bye simply lacks the muster to effectively close the standard edition of the album. This slow burner just screams filler. 5/10

Bad Reputation: The plucky synthesizers that litter the album are thrown out for this jazzy bonus track. Reputation sounds genuine, Clarkson finally makes a return to her sassy past, delivering some of the best vocals of the album with growls and signature upper belts. 7/10

In the Blue: Clarkson's falsetto is front and center here, leaving In the Blue to be a dreamy and addictive synth track. This would have made a much better closer than Good Goes the Bye. 8/10

Second Wind: A chanting chorus sends off the deluxe edition of the album. This is a decent closer that fits Clarkson's growing catalog of anthems, but doesn't blow any of them out of the water. A sure-fire sing along for Clarkson fans, but a non-event for those just listening through. 7/10

Clarkson has long been accused of riding a generic pop-rock train throughout her career, but Piece by Piece shows her taking the first stop off. There's a staggering lack of gritty electric guitars on her past records and a large amount of wavy synths. From the sassy funk of "Bed Reputation," the orchestral "Invincible" and the 80s dance-pop "Nostalgic," Piece by Piece doesn't sit still, it's too busy bursting with curiosity and energy. At this point in her career though, Clarkson has seemed to master the art of reigning in this curiosity, learning where to let her ideas roam and where to hold them tight.

Piece by Piece isn't flawless, but it shows tremendous artistic growth and understanding from an artist who has often been criticized for her high quantities of filler. "Piece by Piece" shows a more mature Clarkson, one who is learning how to control an incredibly diverse mind and pair it with her incredible voice.

Lady Gaga. You insanely talented woman. I will not belittle you by saying that you should have been doing this since 2008, because you changed the pop landscape for decades to come, and pushed artistic boundaries and stood by your work in good times and bad. Throughout your career, you have seen ups and more recently your downs. However, you just send the pendulum back on an upward sing.

First off, what a voice. This was your best vocal performance, period, hands down. The six months of vocal training have been showing not only in this performance, but in your work with Tony Bennett and your live performances since. The vibrato: magnificent and effortless. The placement: semi-operatic, excellent and strain free. The texture, the timbre: lush. When we look back at videos from 2009 up to even 2013, we see some characteristics that have been erased. You have answered your critics, and you have politely smacked them in the face.

 Not only did you surpass yourself, you put yourself in elite vocal company. No, you didn't do Mariah's whistles, Beyoncé's runs or Kelly's belts: you were all Gaga. For seven years the Madonna comparisons have been running rampant. Madonna wishes she could deliver a vocal like this. You now have the artistic capability of Madonna, and the vocal craft of a true professional. It has been a dirty little secret that you can actually sing, but now the entire public can lavish in its truth, and your truth.

Masterful. Keep up the phenomenal work.