I would completely ignore the release of this album, since it's been delayed several times and Nicole Scherzinger, the lead singer, scrapped her solo album and shoved some of her tracks onto it, but I heard there were 20 tracks on it. While that isn't unheard of in the music business, I was sort of hoping it meant that they had better odds to have at least five good tracks.
But instead I was pleasantly surprised by why they have 20 tracks. First of all, there are only that many on the deluxe edition, but I could make a case for why they should be on all of the released albums. Each of the last five tracks are sung by one member of the group, and--as Wikipedia put it--introduces them to the listener. It's been a long-running joke that no one knows who any of the other Dolls are. Honestly, if you lined them up with 50 other hot girls, no one could tell the difference, so it's interesting that they're making an effort to "introduce" them now. The question is, of course, are they even worth paying attention to? We know now that Nicole isn't really all that interesting as a one-woman show, but does it matter who her Dolls are, and should she consider recruiting women that actually make a lasting impression? Not quite Aubrey from Danity Kane, but a little more Kelly from Destiny's Child or Chili from TLC, you know, unassuming and unimposing, but still visible. Well, before I started plotting their replacement, I gave them a fair shot and here's the verdict:
1) Jessica Sutta's "If I was a Man": Um, I realize she's 26-years-old, but this 90s Vanity 6 rip off just proves she's the back-up vocals and generic eye candy.
2) Melody Thornton's "Space": Supposedly Thornton is working on her solo album too, but I doubt it'll do very well. I've heard her sing lead in some Doll tracks and she's actually my second favorite--not that that's saying much--but she's hardly anything to immediately download once she's on her own. She's sort of a low-rent R&B singer--even Ashanti sounds better. Then again Ashanti has come quite far since her Ja Rule-collaboration days.
3) Kimberly Wyatt's "I Don't Want to Fall in Love": You probably know her as the one who extends her leg straight up in the air mid-song, and why not? She is referred to as the "Flexy Doll." And, honestly, that's what she should stick to--flexing, dancing, and enjoying the free ride, cause this sucked.
4) Ashley Roberts' "Played": It's so sad that this is the best of the five tracks. Maybe it's because at 27, she's the oldest and more mature of the other four members, or because she attempted some sort of metaphorical lyricism. At this point, though, the bar is set pretty low.
5) Nicole's "Until You Love U": I guess it's only fair that Nicole gets to showcase herself, even though she does it all the time. Here, it becomes perfectly clear why she gets to sing all the leads. She is truly an amazing vocalist.
Below is actually the best performance ever done by The Pussycat Dolls, which first got me excited about the group in early 2007, when they sang "Tainted Love" on VH1. If only they could get back to this:
As for Doll Domination's other 15 tracks, I grew attached to "Elevator" and "Hush Hush," but I wouldn't bother downloading the whole thing. These Doll's need a new manufacturer.
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