Pink Tries Again

If pop stars can be rebellious, Pink definitely leads the pack. But unless you’re unaware of the punky pop princess, you already know this – so let’s move on. After two successful albums about partying and being an outcast, her newest, Try This, is an album about – you guessed it – partying and being an outcast. Regardless, it’s fairly different than her earlier music. New collaborator Tim Armstrong of Rancid lends a hand to help Pink attempt to “rock out” a little more.Try This plays out like a rock musical set in some bygone era, where the girls are spunky and defiant, but still looking for love. “Unwind” is the ingénue’s breakout solo song in the first act, and the cheesy yet mellow “Love Song” is her sad second act pining-for-the-guy song. However, outside that format, “Catch Me While I’m Sleeping” is utterly reminiscent of Minnie Riperton’s ’75 single “Lovin’ You (Is Easy ‘Cause You’re Beautiful).” “God is a DJ” is her obligatory club song, and “Trouble” reverts to her smack-singing “I’m such a naughty girl” attitude.

As for the lyrics, they are uninspired. Any merit in her standard “be true to yourself” attitude is lost when she complains about having troubles despite being rich, singing “I swallow down all my tears / With a bottle made of silver,” and whining about a guy not calling or coming to her show. There’s still a little too much teen drama queen in Pink’s latest effort, though she deserves credit for trying to mature her style. But in order to outlast the growth of her fans, she’s going to have to mature a lot faster than this.