The Daily Gamecock

Issue date: 10/3/08 Section: The Mix

After a brief break and a reality drama TV show, the Pussycat Dolls are back. Their new album, "Doll Domination," features collaborations with the likes of Missy Elliott and Snoop Dogg and even has a hit single already. However the Doll's latest CD doesn't capture the same fun vibe of their previous album. With less of the dance-able, sexy numbers they are known for, and more bland slow jams, "Doll Domination" falls short of expectations.

Almost everyone has heard a sample of the first single off the album, "When I Grow Up," as it polluted the airwaves all summer and has been played on almost every TV show directed towards the 18 to 24 demographic. The song exemplifies the entire feel of the album: forced. The song relies not on vocals, instrumentals or lyrics, but on the pounding beat alone. Its only strong point is its catchiness, which grows annoying after a while.

The CD, with 16 full songs, is much longer than their previous album, "PCD." The Dolls attempt to bring back the "girl power" feel their previous album became known for - however, this time their efforts fall very short.

Their "independent woman" angle can only be found on the slower, breakup tracks of the album. These songs all sound very similar, with almost identical background music and no variation in voice. The Pussycat Dolls are best at pounding out dance numbers, but this CD has far more slow tracks.

Almost all of these slower songs are about a breakup, in which the woman was wronged but has come out on top and independent. Listening to so many of these in a row grows tiresome, as they all carry the same premise and sound alike. Perhaps the worst of these slow jams is "Halo," a whole five and a half minutes of the Dolls trying to convince a lover not to go by repeatedly apologizing for not being an angel.

This album's lyrics fail to deliver the same punch as hits off the previous record such as "Don't Cha" and "Beep." Instead, many of the songs contain lyrics that do not even make sense.

In "Bottle Pop," which features Snoop Dogg and thus may give false hopes of another "Buttons," the girls sing, or at times just breathe, "When my bottle pop, Shake me."

The Dolls do experiment more on this album than the last, using tribal drums and horns, for example. However, most of the songs rely on tired piano interludes and basic electronic beats for the background music.

In most songs, every time the background Dolls (all but Nicole Scherzinger) sing together, their voices come out sounding electronic and very unnatural.

Scherzinger sings the majority of the time and has a few hits and misses. Often when she sings she sounds just like she is yelling with a sore throat or cannot handle the note she is trying to hit. This is less noticeable on songs containing bigger contributions from the other Dolls, and actually works on the tracks with very quick, short beats.

Overall "Doll Domination" was a let down as a follow-up to the success of "PCD."

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