Rihanna is probably the finest pop star in the world at the moment. That's pop star defined as arena filling, every single a hit type pop star. There are better artists making better records, but as far as household names go, Rihanna rules supreme at the moment.
That's entirely down to her choice of songs, as she mixes it up with great aplomb, excelling in a variety of styles. She can do soulful ballads like "Take A Bow" and "Rehab" without making you reach for the sick bucket. She can do slick, posturing R&B superbly, especially "Rude Boy" and "Hard". And, most crucially, she pick you a hit, like, well, "Umbrella."
She also has an enviable work ethic, with two albums in the last two years. The promotional singles for her last record "Rated R" have actually bled into the build to her new long player "Loud" with both "Hard" and "Rude Boy" still a common site on many music channels.
Her new track, the first UK release from her new album, is "Only Girl (In The World)" and, once again, it's a sonic departure from her previous record.
Much of "Rated R" was hard edged poppy R&B, full of bite and swagger, with production from UK dance duo Chase and Status and Ne-Yo amongst others. It was fun, playful and packed with singles that seem to bait the listener, saying throughout "Am I supposed to be impressed?" It worked a treat, three million sales a treat, but it's not a vein that Rihanna has decided she wants to extend to two albums worth of stuff.
"Only Girl (In The World)" is built like a dance record. Or, more specifically, like the kind of track that ruled the Ibiza dancefloors in the early 1990s. It has something of Snap's "Rhythm Is A Dancer" or Urban Cookie Collective in its make up, with earnest vocals playing out over a pulsating keyboard refrain.
It probably sits best in Rihanna's back catalogue alongside "SOS" and "Pon Da Replay" and it's a little bit of a let down following on from her "Rated R" stuff. She had an aloofness to her image that was worth pursuing and this sounds a little needier, keener to please and to played on every sticky dancefloor on a Saturday night.
"Only Girl (In The World)" actually feels a bit retro, which, for a girl who was always quietly challenging in who she worked with and songs she released, is a something of a disapointment. This track could have been recorded by any number of acts, including people like Cascada. Though it's still a decent tune and won't have people switching their car radios off, it doesn't have the bite of "Hard" or the playful teasing quality of "Rude Boy" and suffers for it.
She can, has and will do better than this.
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