Lily Allen Its Not Me, Its You (EMI)
5/5
By: Matt Tomiak
In the three years since her smash debut Alright, Still hit the shelves, Lily Allen's rise to rent-a-gob London tabloid perennial threatened to lose her the many admirers that the fizzy, unaffected girlish charms her first record had earned her. Conveniently for Lily, It's Not Me, It's You (co-written with producer Greg Kurstin) is up there, in all honesty, with the epoch-defining records of UK pop's previous generation like Parklife and Different Class.
There's a state-of-the-nation boldness infusing the opening two tracks; 'Everyone's At It' addresses illicit pharmaceutical hypocrisy and 'The Fear' skewers the inanity of modern celebrity, whilst crucially retaining the unalloyed, sprightly joy of her early singles. Certainly fans of 'LDN' and 'Smile' won't be disappointed here.
Thereafter -save for the theological meanderings of 'Him' - the tone becomes markedly more personal. Much of it focuses on romantic fragmentation and fallout, yet to describe 'INMIY' as a break-up album does it a major disservice, as the ensuing tracks explore a multitude of emotions, styles and themes. Employing a wickedly coquettish vocal to supreme effect, the country-tinged gallop of 'Not Fair' rivals Elastica's 'Stutter' for devastating male ego shattering bedroom declarations. "I look into your eyes, I want to get to know you" whispers Lily, affectionately. "Then you make this noise and it's apparent it's all over." Ouch.
With its incongruously jaunty Britpop piano and observations of an increasingly desperate late twenty something, '22' fancies itself as a female riposte to one of Blur's classic quarter-life crisis analyses like 'Chemical World' or 'End of A Century'; an irrepressible chutzpah and killer melody ensures it actually is.
There's a palpable sense of confusion and resentment which lends this LP a priceless aura of authenticity. The Klaxons-y 'Back To The Start' features a cathartic rapid-fire list of regretful acknowledgments, veritably dripping with insecurity; 'I Could Say', meanwhile, is a triumphant kiss-off to an ex. Anti-Neocon diatribe 'F*** You' juxtaposes a childlike tune with gleefully filthy lyrical content (a trick employed to fine effect in the past by the likes of Ben Folds and Eels). 'Who'd Have Known' brilliantly pinpoints the blissful formative stages of a blossoming relationship - "even thought its moving forward/there's just the right amount of awkward."
Honest, heartbreaking, hilarious, harrowing- It's Not Me, It's You is an early contender for album of 2009.
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