Prior to her debut album, , made her name as a protegee of , appearing as a backing/guest vocalist on a few tracks with and, naturally, 's producer, . It should come as no surprise that those are the two dominant personalities on , even if produces and co-writes several cuts here, since this whole axis has one sound that has served them well. Served them so well, it's given them critical and chart hits, along with a host of imitators, so there is no reason to abandon it now, even if the skeletal rhythms and endlessly looped riffs are beginning to wear a bit thin. This formula depends more on the overall sound of the track than the charisma of the singer -- but, ironically enough, it works best when its fronted by somebody with personality, like . fades into the mix. She's attractive and is sweetly sexy, but isn't forceful. That works to her advantage on the lead single, where she's so taken by a seduction she can barely speak, or even name who's taking her. Driven by a clever Casio-bass clarinet loop, it's the hottest thing on the record, punctured slightly by 's disarming murmur, "I was feeling so good I had to touch myself," but it's good enough to withstand that. The rest of sustains the essential feel of that track, occasionally forcing a -era to the forefront (which is welcome), and it does have a few songs that distinguish themselves, such as but it all blends together a little bit too much to be distinctive and, as such, it has a faint feel of product, a slow seduction record for the -worshipping hipster set. A feel that is only enhanced by the end of the record, when actually records her thank you shout-outs as a full track, then, as a bonus, there are two uncredited tracks that don't seem to have a trace of to them. Their inclusion is puzzling, unless you consider them the overdue payment of distinctive for those hardcore fans who sat through the even-handed, stylish but samey that is . ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine