Lily Allen - It's Not Me, It's You

Sorry for the lack of updates, but I've been sick this whole week and listening to music was pretty much the furthest thing from my mind. While I was ignoring my blog, Lily Allen's new album, It's Not Me, It's You, leaked. When Allen first rose to popularity with her 2006 debut, Alright, Still, I tried really hard to hate her music, but eventually even I cracked after hearing "Smile" for the 700th time. Now, two years later, I found myself actually curious to hear her new album. Although Allen has stated in interviews that It's Not Me, It's You is supposed to be more "mature," it's pretty much the type of album that you would expect the twenty-three year old pop star to release next. There's a song about kids lying and doing drugs ("Everyone's At It"), a boyfriend not giving Allen what she, uh, needs in the bedroom ("Not Fair"), and Allen rejecting another guy's advances ("Never Gonna Happen"), all amped up with the same tepid club beats. Although It's Not Me, It's You suffers from a lot of one-note tracks that don't really take the album anywhere, thankfully there are still a few catchy gems that save the album in the end, including lead single, "The Fear," and the glitchy, piano-laden "Back To The Start." Overall, not a bad second effort from Allen, but still not an album to get overly excited about.

DOWNLOAD: Lily Allen - It's Not Me, It's You [Capitol]
Recommended Tracks: "The Fear," "22," "Back To The Start," "Fuck You."