Nicola Roberts - Cinderella's Eyes
Cinderella's Eyes marks the beginning of Nicola Roberts' post-Girls Aloud solo career, and it's a surprisingly solid first effort.
It doesn't open particularly strongly, kicking off with the album's first two singles.
'Beat of My Drum' is, in all honesty, a poor song, and it's not a great choice to kick-start the album.
Follow-up single 'Lucky Day' is a catchy, well-crafted pop song, but Nicola Roberts' vocals don't do it justice.
It may be unfair to completely criticise her vocals, as they do work extremely well on some of the albums more sensitive moments.
Credit where credit's due, Roberts also co-wrote every track on the album (with the exception of one cover).
The songs are well-written, and the vocals improve as the album goes on, fitting well on the haunting 'Porcelain Heart'.
Cinerella's Eyes, as an album, is solid but unremarkable, feeling like a decent debut but not really reaching Nicola Roberts' obvious potential.
It at least attempts to be diverse, and achieves it on songs like 'i', but the vocals really detract from the overall quality.
Lyrically deep at times, Roberts has created a personal record that feels like an insight into her past.
In 'i', there are allusions to the criticisms sent her away during her time in Girls Aloud.
"I don't like nasty words, they hurt me like you never know, but don't think I won't put on a smiley face and do the show".
It's a bitter line that at least shows that Nicola Roberts' song-writing carries a lot more depth than some of her contemporaries.
Along with the likes of Jessie J, it's refreshing to hear such honesty on a pop record.
Ending brilliantly on the emotional and motivational 'sticks + stones', it's hard to deny that Nicola Roberts had created a good debut.
She'll surprise people with the lyrical depth on the record and, despite some shortcomings vocally, this is definitely worth checking out.
Female First - Alistair McGeorge
Tagged in Girls Aloud Nicola Roberts