Wednesday, January 6, 2010

12. Christina Aguilera - Fighter (2003)

Rock didn't contribute much to this decade. It had nothing to say. But the power and emotion encapsulated in a rock guitar can still shake and exhilarate us, and served as one of the building blocks to the new pop. Here, Christina Aguilera employs Dave Navarro, Red Hot Chilli Peppers guitarist, to make a record that rocks much harder than anything the Chilli Peppers themselves did throughout the decade.

Christina Aguilera was a pure delight. Intelligent, sensitive, talented, opinionated, creative, sweet, funky and good-tasted, she made pop with class, and was a big part of making this a feminine decade. Her breakthrough came with the wave of girl singers that followed in the wake of Britney Spears, and at first it was just bubblegum pop, but even back then, you could sense that this girl had more depth than the charming but superficial Britney. Rapidly, Christina began to broaden her music, masterfully combining sounds from different eras, and singing in a voice that seemed to reach every note and convey every feeling. And her lyrics were always to the point.

Still, people did not give her the respect she deserves, and regarded her as light entertainment. This record can be interpreted as her answer to them, and as always with her, she takes a positive outlook, and makes lemonade out of lemons. She thanks those who forced her to struggle because it made her stronger, and when we hear her powerful voice overriding even Navarro's guitar, who are we to argue? In a decade that was full of girl-power anthems, this was one of the most compelling.

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