Nelly Furtado - Loose

Well this review is way out of left field isn't it haha. Told everyone I was going to review all the CDs I own and gosh darn it I'm going to do it....even if it's a CD I picked up at a thrift store for one particular song and haven't listened to the full CD. Nelly Furtado first came on my radar when this album was already a massive hit. I remember hearing Promiscuous on the radio and having no real idea of what it actually meant. I got that it was about a guy & a girl, but I didn't know what the word meant so obviously the meaning was over my head. This will be another of those really rambling posts as I've never listened to this album before.

Track #1, Afraid (ft. Attitude): The verses really reminded me of another song that I can't place at the moment. Not a big fan of that kind of structure on the verses. The pre-chorus and chorus is good. Also not a big fan of the random rap feature. The song would have been fine without it as the rapper didn't really add anything. Listening to her music again reminds me of how much I love her vocal tone. It's pretty unique. 3/5.

Track #2, Maneater: This is the song I bought the CD for. It's crazy how fresh this song still sounds 9 years after the CD was released. It's just so fantastic. Really the highlight of her career in my opinion. 5/5.

Track #3, Promiscuous (ft. Timbaland): I remember this song being EVERYWHERE in 2006-2007. I also remember how Timbaland used to be a massive star and produced everything. Not the biggest rap fan, but I do quite like his features and productions. There's just something about him that works for me. Maybe it's just because these songs were my middle school years and it's kind of nostalgic. I wouldn't mind if this type of song made a comeback into the mainstream. 4/5.

Track #4, Glow: The song sounds quite a lot like something Gwen Stefani would have put on Love Angel Music Baby. In fact, she really sounds like Gwen here. I actually thought I might be accidentally playing the wrong album. As with the majority of LAMB, this song has the same qualities to it that makes me very 'meh' towards it. It's just really not my type of song. 3/5.

Track #5, Showtime: Not a big fan of all the little talking pieces in the beginnings and ends of these songs. I know it was a trend to do that then, but it really takes away from the songs. Much like Glow, this is a nice R&B track, but not my type of thing. I do really like the faint synth-piano? sound in the chorus. It's too bad it wasn't more featured. It stands out in the run-of-the-mill R&B of the song. 3/5.

Track #6, No Hay Igual: Really surprised that this song is almost fully in Spanish. I like it. Very Shakira to me, and not because it's sung in Spanish. It has that very distinct Latin flair to it that Shakira uses in her music. I like how this album was a huge smash and it's bilingual (even if only for a couple of songs). I think we'd all benefit from being exposed to more than just our first language on a regular basis. 4/5.

Track #7, Te Busque (ft. Juanes): Ooh is this one in Spanish too? Aw, I guess not. She sounds a lot like Gwen again in this song. Oh wait! It's half in Spanish. Juanes' voice is so nice. The verses of this song are more your typical ballad verses, but the duet of the chorus really works. They should have done the entire song together. Not a huge fan of spoken bridges, but this one isn't really out of place. 4/5.

Track #8, Say It Right: I used to have a really REALLY irrational hate for this song. I remember whenever it came on the radio I either changed the channel immediately, or cursed it out in my head. Half of the reason was that it was ALWAYS on the radio, the other half of the reason was that for some reason I thought it was a bad song. Like really morally bad. Not as in a random sex reference or double entendre or something like that, but I just felt like it was really really wrong to listen to. Which is weird because you'd think that twelve year old me would have gotten the same vibe from Promiscuous. But I didn't. I'm guessing that it has to do with the feel of the song. It's so....ethereal? Is that the correct word? It's just so incredibly different from most things that were on the radio at that point and to a twelve year old that's probably enough to make it stand out in the wrong way. It's actually a little difficult to listen to know even though I actually know what the lyrics are now. I don't think that will ever stop. Still a pretty good song musically and lyrically though. 4/5.

Track #9, Do It: Hm. I thought I'd never heard this song before but I guess it was a single at some point because I know it very well. Guess I never the title. The chorus is very catchy, but it's not a very memorable song. I checked out about half way through it and I don't understand how I'm at the end of it already. 3.5/5.

Track #10, In God's Hands: Does she have an accent? Because if she does, it's very noticeable in this track. And if she doesn't, I don't know why she's singing like this. Beyond that, this is just a really boring song. I guess every album has to have a ballad, but why do album ballads have to make you want to fall asleep? I really can't feel any kind of emotional connection with this song. It's got one of the longest studio speaking at the end of it too. 3/5.

Track #11, Wait For You: This beat is kind of interesting. It's got a slight Indian flair to it. It's too bad the song is extremely repetitive. Oh my gosh....it's over five minutes long? I'm bored of it and I'm only to 2:30. Oh that turn there....sounds like it was attempting to do what Justin Timberlake's What Goes Around Comes Around does...which makes sense because I believe Timbaland produced both. The pounding beat at the end of this really hurts my ears too. 3.5/5.

Track #12, All Good Things (Come To An End): Isn't this know as one of her best tracks? If I'm right in that assumption, I don't get it. The lyrics are all right, but not spectacular. Same way with the music. It's a very mediocre number to close the standard version of the album. The bridge is the highlight of the song and it's way too short. 3/5.

Track #13, Te Busque (Spanish Version): Just the Spanish version.

Track #14, Let My Hair Down: One of the British and Japanese bonus tracks. I can see why this song didn't make the cut for the standard album. It's probably the most urban of all of the songs she has on this, and she also sounds really silly in this song. It's really not a style that suits her at all. And the line "I like sports, but I don't like wearing shorts." Ouch....just....that's really bad. 2.5/5.

Track #15, Somebody To Love: This song is a bonus track on the British, Australian, German, and Japanese editions of the album. With this one, it feels too pop latin for the regular album. I can definitely understand why these were both bonus tracks. This song is not bad though. Probably would have made a good single for an album with a different direction. 3.5/5.

Track #16, What I Want: This is a bonus track on the Japanese version of the album. I'm actually surprised that none of the bonus tracks so far have really fit the original album. Usually there's at least one bonus track that should have been on the album (Taylor Swift's Wonderland for example), but these really are better as bonus tracks. This is your very typical ballad right down to the lyrics. Very boring. Her vocals do sound very nice though. 3/5.

Track #17, Runaway: Pretty sure this is the final of the bonus tracks; off of the International tour edition. Now this is a ballad done correctly. The lyrics are great and you can feel the emotion. Would have loved to have this on standard album. It doesn't really have the R&B/urban feeling of the album and is much more like her I'm Like A Bird era, but I think this is better than the ballads on the standard. 4/5.

Loose (audio) Spotify Link

I'd argue that this is very much a singles album. The singles that were released from the album were fantastic, but the album songs range from somewhat good to mediocre. Slightly disappointed, but I didn't have much expectation going into the album either. 3.5/5.