She has a striking vocal resemblance to the young Whitney Houston or even Mariah Carey. Leona Lewis won the third series of the British reality talent show The X Factor. The X Factor is the revamped follow-up to the original U.K. talent search, Pop Idol, of which American Idol is the massively successful U.S. version;

Lewis who made fame with her first single Bleeding Lovefrom her debut effort ‘Spirit’ is back with a sophomore album that sees her working with superstar talent Ne-Yo, John Shanks, Max Martin and Ryan Tedder, as well as with new collaborators Xenomania and Julian Bennetta. Clive Davis and Simon Cowell who co-produced the album. The Brit songstress has produced a pure pop album with a strict pop music formula that showcases Lewis' impressive vocal abilities to the hilt. While her spirited effort on her debut worked wonders, the new effort hits a few high notes and low as well.

The lyrics on her album talk about heartache, love…….. its pitfalls and its good side and bad side. Lewis despite taking on the best of the production for her side, it’s her voice that is on display for all to hear. Compared to ‘Spirit’, Lewis has experimented with more up-tempo tracks, away from her balladic ventures.

My Hands is one of the standouts and so is Can't Breathe. Heavy bests together on songs like Outta my Head and Broken, are full of high vocals and a little overdose on the nerves  Thus a respite comes from Naked, Stop crying your heart out that has good moments. Echo is average. The later half of the album is definitely better than the first half. Though the beats are a little too much, her vocals are overshadowed by them. It is quite shoddy we’d say. Though her brilliant vocals are a treat for the ears capable of heart stopping intensity, most of the melody driven songs are downers.

You could give the album a miss if you don’t want to be tortured by loud vocals and heavy instrumentation. Includes lyrics.

Rating: *****

Reviewed by Verus Ferreira