Michael Jackson is running an attitude throughout, even calling the album Invincible. It’s funny in a way if you think about it because he’s always tried to pretend to be something he’s not in calling albums Bad and Dangerous. Now Invincible is really taking a step either off of a short pier or into infamy.
Michael brought in the writer of the stars in Rodney Jerkins. The problem is that it makes him sound just like everybody else as Jerkins has that problem himself. Jackson’s signature voice certainly keeps his material his, but the words and the production are really the foundation. “Unbreakable” opens the album with a great verse: “with all I’ve been through, I’m still around.” Even with that said, the song is really average for Jackson.
“Invincible” is almost a single. It’s not great, but it’s not entirely bad. I’m caught in the ghost of the past and the hope for the future. Even the rap by Fats falls so far south of good that I’m surprised Jackson included it. “Heaven Can Wait” is lovely. “Whatever Happens” shows a new side full of rejuvenation at the hand of Teddy Riley.
Not so exciting is “Heartbreaker”. This isn’t even par for Jackson. “Break Of Dawn” is clichéd and one of the few sans Jenkins tracks. Chris Tucker’s intro on “You Rock My World” is embarrassing. Does anyone believe MJ is out there acting like this or would were he not a star? Not on my life at least. The song is decent but hardly single-worthy.
My problem with “2000 Watts” is that it’s Michael pretending to be Tyrese. What I like about it is that it’s Michael trying to be something else without all the nonsense. Furthering confusion is “Privacy”. Here he sounds raw and rough, but the questions are easily answered on why we want to know so much about him, and that is because he’s a freak of nature. He made his bed, so sorry that he has to sleep in it.
Nowhere does Jackson want to prove he can do something new. Hasn’t “The Lost Children” been done by him a few times before? I’m not going to lie and say the song isn’t touching, but it was touching two albums ago as well.
There is a R. Kelly written track, “Cry”, that sounds too “Man In The Mirror” to be new. This seems to be the recurring theme throughout Invincible. It’s Jackson trying to find the new while staying firmly implanted in the past. The problem is that you can’t have it both ways. Jackson either needs to forget the past and move toward the future or keep redoing his hits. He’s stuck with one foot in each direction and it proves he’s not invincible at all.
+ rae gun
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