“A solid debut for Selena Gomez & The Scene. There are tracks that showcase the Disney star’s vocals and songwriting abilities but also the fact that she takes on a variety of musical styles on this album and for the most part, does a very good job at it.”
BAND: Selena Gomez & The Scene
ALBUM: Kiss & Tell (Digital Version)
LABEL: Hollywood Records
DURATION: 42:25
RELEASE DATE: September 29, 2009
- Kiss & Tell
- I Won’t Apologize
- Falling Down
- I Promise You
- Crush
- Naturally
- The Way I Loved You
- More
- As a Blonde
- I Don’t Miss You At All
- Stop & Erase
- I Got U
- Tell Me Something I Don’t Know
Selena Gomez is known for her acting on the Disney Channel sitcom “Wizards of Waverly Place” and the film “Princess Protection Program” but this year alone, we have seen her evolve into a music artist. And similar to her Disney counterparts such as Ashley Tisdale and Demi Lovato, the first taste of her music via Selena Gomez & The Scene came with her single “Falling Down”.
At the time, I felt the single was a bit average but I wanted to hear more of what she is capable of through her debut album “Kiss & Tell” and see if she has what it takes to be a music star or if she should stick to her day job.
For the most part, the album is quite a mixed bag because there are songs that really showcase her vocals and are very well done but then you have other songs that the music and vocals were average. Also, Selena Gomez & The Scene experiment with different styles of music throughout the album.
Songs that did capture my attention were tracks such as “I Won’t Apologize” really featured her vocals very well and a song that Gomez co-wrote. Had almost a retro 80’s style of rock feel but overall, a splendid track.
“Crush” is an upbeat, happy rock track. Really dig the electric guitars and the vocals and a rock song that does well in showcasing her vocals more than her single “Falling Down”. Another happy rock track in similar style on the album is “As a Blonde” (a cover of the Fefe Dobson song) and the title track “Kiss & Tell”. But the rock track that caught my attention on this album is the track “Stop & Erase” which is a fun, upbeat rock track.
The track “Naturally” is a dance club track featuring a more electronic style than other tracks on the album. Overall, a pretty cool track. Gomez also experiments with more synth-driven music with the track “I Don’t Miss You At All”.
Selena’s ballad “The Way I Loved You” is a song that I wanted to hear. This song absolutely showcases Selena’s vocals and is fantastic!
The single bubblegum pop track (ala Britney Spears style) that I actually was pretty cool was the final track “Tell Me Something I Don’t Know”. A fun pop track and in a way, makes me wish there more songs on the album with this similar style. The song was Gomez’s first charting single and was re-recorded because the original was created back when she was 15 years old.
Overall, Selena Gomez & The Scene’s “Kiss & Tell” is a pretty solid debut. Gomez told MTV, “I’m still new and still figuring out where I want to be musically. But I think this is a good start … hopefully.” and we have seen other Disney artists echo the same sentiments of their first album and do something different for their second album.
But for the most part, this album definitely showcased Selena’s vocals. I felt that “Falling Down” was not exactly the single that demonstrated her musical talent but after hearing the various styles of music and how she truly delivered vocally on “I Won’t Apologize” definitely was quite impressive and that this is not an artist that is releasing an album just because of her Disney popularity. She definitely has vocal talent and I would love to see her continue that mixed genre style in her next album because she is able to crossover vocally in a variety of genres.
All in all, if you are a Selena Gomez fan or love her songs, Selena Gomez & The Scene’s “Kiss & Tell” is an album worth checking out!