STM Chart Bits: Katy Perry Soars; 'Bionic' Underperforms

The new Billboard Hot 100 chart is now out and boy oh boy, this is moment I've been waiting for! Katy Perry soars to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for the second time in her career with "California Gurls," the lead single from her album "Teenage Dream," due August 24. Perry previously led the list for seven weeks with "I Kissed a Girl" in the summer of 2008. I really love this song and I really wanted Katy to reach number one coz this song is very deserving to be number one. Congrats Katy! :)

On other chart news, there are 3 main competitors for the peak of next week's album chart: The soundtrack to Twilight Saga: Eclipse which is expected to debut at number one with 140,000 to 160,000 copies sold by week's end on June 13, the new soundtrack to Glee which is going for 2nd with 110,000 to 130,000 units and Christina Aguilera's comeback album, "Bionic" expected to sell around 100,000 to 120,000 units and enter the charts at number 3.

MTV Movie Awards 2010 Performances

A lot of you may already know that the MTV Movie Awards 2010 has just been concluded and below we have the night's amazing performances. The first one is from Christina Aguilera who performed a medley of "Bionic", "Not Myself Tonight" and "Woohoo" off her new album, "Bionic" due out worldwide tomorrow! Well, what can I say? Aguilera nailed it! Fabulous set which is very "Bionic" with bad ass choreos and all, plus Christina's powerhouse vocal. This is the type of performance people were expecting from her during the American Idol finale. Well, I guess she saved the best for last!

 Bionic / Not Myself Tonight / Woohoo Medley - Christina Aguilera

Next video is from Katy Perry who performed her most recent hit, "California Gurls" with Snoop Dogg. I actually enjoyed this performance very much! Very colorful and fun! It ain't as extravagant as Aguilera's performance but Perry totally nailed it! I really loved the stage design which is very "summery". Really captured the vibe of the song. I hope the music video to this song would turn out as great as this live performance.

California Gurls - Katy Perry featuring Snoop Dogg

STM Likes: Bionic - Christina Aguilera

OK, I guess the album review I did yesterday was the blog's most visited post this month so I decided to make another one. Also because of the fact that I needed to write my additional thoughts on Christina Aguilera's "Bionic".

After listening to it quite a few times on my iPod, I must admit that "Bionic" is growing on me big time! Still not a fan of the ballads (I didn't actually include them on music player) but the upbeat songs are getting better and better by every listen! Let me give you my thoughts on songs that standout:

BIONIC - This is the prefect song to open the album. A "welcome to my world" kind of song.

NOT MYSELF TONIGHT - I already made my review on this one. After listening to the whole album, NMT remained to be one of my favorite songs off "Bionic". I love the "GaGa beats" on it. Too bad it failed big time on Billboard, not even managing to enter the Top 20.

WOOHOO - Right from the time it hit the net, I already loved this song which features rapper Nicki Minaj. Very R&B and Aguilera's vocals is soaring in this track. The beat kind of tells you  to get your ass up and jam. And oh,  how can we not love Minaj's bad ass rap? The song  kinda reminds me of Beyonce's "Single Ladies".

ELASTIC LOVE - One of my favorite tracks off the album! Kinda reminds me of Britney Spears' "Freakshow". The strong synths give you the big O while listening to it. Lyrically, it was kind of genius except for the chorus which is kinda repetitive.

DESNUDATE - The title (which means "Get Naked") says it all. It's a sex song. Again, repetitive lyrics but seek beats. I love the fact that it's latin-flavored. Wish it was shorter though coz it gets kinda boring towards the end which kinda makes you skip to the next song.

GLAM - This song is all about fashion and being glamorous. Every girl could probably relate to this. Must be one of my least favorite off my "favorite list". I just can't relate to the lyrics.

PRIMA DONNA - Her vocals on this one can be compared to her vocals on "Fighter". Bad side about this track is that the verses are kind of "lazy" but picks up when you get to the chorus.

I HATE BOYS - This, in my opinion, is the strongest track off "Bionic" commercial-wise. Once you hear the bass-driven intro, it'll get you energized and will surely have you on your feet dancing. Downside is that it sounds a lot like Britney Spears' "Radar" and it is too short. An added verse would've made it perfect.

MY GIRLS - For me, this track would summarize what "Bionic" is all about - girls getting together, dancing and having fun. Also one of the strongest tracks off the album, this would  also fit perfectly on Gwen Stefani's record,  "Love. Angel. Music. Baby."

VANITY - This is Christina's most egocentric song on the album, talking about how "pretty" and "sexy" she is and even claiming that she "owns the throne". Let's give her the right to fantasize, it's her song and album after all.

Overall, I would say that Aguilera was wise enough to pick up music styles from past works of Britney Spears, Lady GaGa, Beyonce and Madonna and incorporated them into "Bionic". Not saying that she copied them, but obviously, she got ideas from these artists which is very much evident on songs that make up this album. Vocally, Christina still delivered and didn't sound too different from how she sounded on "Stripped". Lyrically though, this album is inferior to "Stripped" as songs on "Bionic" were more of the party anthem and sex anthem types.

STM Album Review: Bionic - Christina Aguilera

  

TRACKLIST:

1. Bionic
2. Not Myself Tonight
3. Woohoo feat. Nicki Minaj
4. Elastic Love
5. Desnudate
6. Love & Glamour (intro)
7. Glam
8. Prima Donna
9. Morning Dessert (intro)
10. Sex For Breakfast
11. Lift Me Up
12. My Heart (Intro)
13. All I Need
14. I Am
15. You Lost Me
16. I Hate Boys
17. My Girls feat. Peaches
18. Vanity

Pop Diva Christina Aguilera is all set to release her first album in 4 years on June 8, 2010. 'Bionic' as the album is called, is going to be "very futuristic" according to Aguilera herself. After listening to the album in full, I would say, it didn't turn out that way. 'Bionic' turned out to be  somewhat similar to Aguilera's previous effort, "Stripped". From pop to electro to power ballads, Christina did seem to have experimented with the sound of this album and good enough, the album turned out quite solid, in my honest opinion. 

I really love that fact that she went out of her shell this time and tried to make a lot of upbeat songs. Though I wish she made a full dance album out of this one and stayed away from the boring ballads for a change. Well obviously, I'm not a fan of the slow songs included in the album (Sex For Breakfast, Lift Me Up, All I Need, You Lost Me). This has got to be Aguilera's weakest line-up of ballads so far. None of the slow songs would actually match the caliber of her previous ballads like "I Turn to You", "Beautiful" and "The Voice Within" nor make a potential radio hit. I was actually expecting a lot from the Linda Perry-penned "Lift Me Up" but she did not deliver this time.

On a positive note, this has got to be Christina's second best album. I love "Stripped" hands down but "Bionic" is on a close second place. It kinda makes you wanna dance once you  pop this disc on your player and keeps you wanting for more until somewhere at the middle, you lose the energy and get bored of the shallow ballads. That's only until "You Lost Me" though coz once  "I Hate Boys" starts playing, you'll once again get off your feet and dance your butt off until the album's last track. Had it been a few tracks shorter, 'Bionic" would've been one of the greatest dance-pop albums out there along with the likes of Britney Spears' "Blackout", Madonna's "Confessions on a Dance Floor" and Rihanna's "Good Girl Gone Bad".

REPEAT: Not Myself Tonight, WooHoo, Elastic Love, Desnudate, Glam, I Hate Boys, My Girls, Vanity

SKIP: Sex For Breakfast, Lift Me Up, All I Need, You Lost Me

STM VERDICT:

STM World Premiere: Christina Aguilera - Not Myself Tonight (Full Song)

On Saturday, STM gave you the snippet to Christina Aguilera's brand new single, "Not Myself Tonight". Today, we finally get to hear the song in full, courtesy of her official website, christinaaguilera.com! Checkout the full song after the jump.

In the song, Aguilera sings "...If you really knew me you'd know it's not the norm / Cause I'm doing things that I normally won't do / the old me's gone I feel brand new". True enough coz this time, Aguilera dropped her usual "tamed" lyrics and now sings about dancing, kissing boys and girls (Katy Perry?), not to forget the occasional use of the F-word! Well, it's honestly a good listen. I actually like the song. Though this kind of music isn't really something "new" and original. This may be "new" to Aguilera but we've already heard this electro-pop kind of sound from Britney Spears and Lady GaGa. You can actually hear GaGa's trademark beats in the song's background and of course, the lyrics is something Spears is known for - dancing, boys and just being nasty.

Christina Aguilera Album News

("Bionic" album cover)

 

PRESS RELEASE: With 30 million albums sold worldwide and the prestigious honor of being the only artist under the age of 30 included in Rolling Stone Magazine's list of the 100 greatest singers of all time, 5 time Grammy Award winner Christina Aguilera has already achieved an unprecedented level of success. Aguilera's been hard at work in the studio for the past year and is pleased to announce the release of her highly anticipated 4th studio album Bionic (RCA Records) this summer. The first single from "Bionic" is the fiercely energetic anthem "Not Myself Tonight", produced by Polow Da Don. The song will premiere on ChristinaAguilera.com at 6pm EDT on 3/30, impacts radio on 4/5 and will be available on iTunes on 4/13.

Bionic features songs co-written by Aguilera along with her much buzzed about collaborations including Sia, Tricky Stewart, Polow Da Don, Le Tigre, Hill & Switch, and Ladytron among others. Aguilera notes, "Working on this album with so many talented artists and producers that I admire was really an amazing experience. The artists I chose to work with added so many unique sonic layers to Bionic. My intention was to step into their world and what they do combined with my own vision and sound. The results were magic." The album also features a ballad produced and written by Linda Perry titled "Lift Me Up". The title Bionic reflects Aguilera's ability to take her range to new levels and use her voice in various ways never heard before.

Aguilera describes the album as a unique mix of many genres and styles of music, "I was able to explore and create a fresh, sexy feel using both electronic and organic elements with subject matter ranging from playful to introspective. I am so excited for my fans to hear the new sound. It is something I don't think anyone will expect." In addition to completing the album which was all recorded from her home studio after the birth of her first son, Christina also completed production on her first film, "Burlesque." The film, which co-stars Cher, Stanley Tucci, and Kristen Bell will be released by ScreenGems this fall.

Aguilera's "Bionic" is set to be released worldwide on June 8, 2010. The single cover for "Not Myself Tonight" was released last Wednesday, March 24. The lyrics to the song was released a day after, on March 25th. Today, the snippet of the song was finally released via Aguilera's official website. You can find the single cover, lyrics and snippet of "Not Myself Tonight" below:

("Not Myself Tonight" single cover)

"Not Myself Tonight"

Written by Polow Da Don & Ester Dean
Produced by Polow Da Don for Zone4, Inc.

You know tonight
I am feeling a little out control
is this me
you wanna get crazy
because I don't give a...

1ST VERSE
I'm out of character
I'm in rare form
and If you really knew me
you'd know its not the norm

B SECTION:
Cause I'm doing things that I normally won't do
the old me's gone I feel brand new
and if you don't like it f*ck you

The music's on and I'm dancing
I'm normally in the corner just standing
I'm feeling unusual
I don't care cause this is my night

HOOK:
I'm not myself tonight
tonight I'm not the same girl same girl

I'm not myself tonight
tonight I'm not the same girl same girl

2ND VERSE:
I'm dancing alot and I'm taking shots I'm feeling fine
I'm kissing all the boys and the girls
someone call the doctor cause I lost my mind

B SECTION:
Cause I'm doing things that I normally won't do
the old me's gone I feel brand new
and if you don't like it **** you

The music's on and I'm dancing
I'm normally in the corner just standing
I'm feeling unusual
I don't care cause this is my night

HOOK:
I'm not myself tonight
tonight I'm not the same girl same girl

I'm not myself tonight
tonight I'm not the same girl same girl

BRIDGE:
In the morning
when I wake Up
I'll go back to the girl I used to be
but baby not tonight

HOOK:
I'm not myself tonight
tonight I'm not the same girl same girl

I'm not myself tonight
tonight I'm not the same girl same girl

Yah, that feels good
I needed that
get crazy
let's go
that's right
come on
give it to me now, don't stop