An interesting foray into "rock and/or roll" by one of the last people I'd expect to serve a plate. It's still Pop with Rock characteristics, but maybe I'm nitpicking because I want to defend my precious Rock. I hear tracks that remind me of Billy Idol, Depeche Mode, or Hole with Miley’s twist, and they manage to be catchy and fun. Overall, you get an album that is not bad; just, as a keeper, not for me.
P.S.
I
Reading other critic and audience reviews on the internet, I'm happy to see I'm not the only one up my own ass.
The pervading fulcrum is Miley's (seemingly) surprise jaunt into Rock. Lot of imagery written about her chameleon-like ability to work into any genre. Here are some pictures of chameleons—as you see, camouflage is relative.
I'm amazed "Wrecking Ball" was seven years ago. It's still a keystone memory for me. I never watched much Hannah Montana (only had Disney Channel for a few brief years, and really only watched Even Stevens) so her old persona had little purchase, but home, work, and away, I was bombarded by the discourse of shock and awe. Why is she doing this? Can they put this on TV? Did Billy Ray know about this? "Party in the U.S.A." was almost exactly four years prior. I would hear that Miley had "lost it."
II
Maybe the real fun in being a Miley fan is the experience over time. Being along for the ride, ups and downs, like playing Risk Legacy or watching a Linklater joint. Various YouTube comments seem to support this—watching her zig/zag and transform and be amazed is a repeated sentiment. "Wrecking Ball" accelerated the trajectory—sloughing off surface Disney Channel fans like dead-skin to create a more and more unflappable core.
For fans who've stuck out the whole way, I wonder if Hannah Montana is the reflection, or is it New Miley? Is one better or worse? "Right”? Are they any more separable than the front and back of a coin? The duality may have always existed for her, but it’s now clear to anyone.
III
Miley Cyrus is a visual artist at the end of the day. Was "Wrecking Ball" and the rest of Bangerz so transgressive?
"I came in like a wrecking ball / I never hit so hard in love / All I wanted was to break your walls / All you ever did was wreck me"
Milquetoast. I mean, that's pretty standard pop. So then wasn't it the music videos and TV performances (Robin Thicke was in the mix too) that drove all the attention and clamor? But of course, it must. The thesis of Hannah Montana is a pop singer living a double life observed on a TV show. The antithesis might be a transgressive singer, but it’s not; the anthesis is a pop singer living a double life observed on a transgressive TV show.
Until the dialectic resolves the synthesis won't be clear, but Cyrus’ process will root in visual artistry.
IV
Did Cyrus "lose it" then? Now in 2020 I hear “lose it” and I think about what they said about Chappelle and it seems too simple and insidious a label to place on anyone.
Did Corey Feldman "lose it"? I mean, probably. Harder fall. Is Cyrus like Corey Feldman? If Cyrus is Chaotic-Good, Feldman is probably Chaotic-Bad, in that I can say his album was bad.
Didn’t expect another child actor album but here we go.
Is Cyrus like Shia LeBeouf (Even Stevens callback)? Shia might have "lost it" a little while ago, in a diet version. Another visual artist, he might actually be one of the generational great acting talents, "crazy-talented" or "crazy"-talented, you know the ones. Honey Boy? The Sia video?
Is Cyrus like Ryan Gosling? Gosling really seems to have had a soft landing from the MM club. Visual artist. And so dreamy. Actually, wait a second...
Between "Never Be Me" and "Golden G String," there is an outro with some self-observation, more than just a wink to the audience. In some part they answer the question of what "losing it" might look like from the other side. Is it possible not to "lose it"? Or has everyone lost it already?
P.P.S
My roommate adopted a husky named Miley, named after Cyrus. My roommate re-named her Maya, not wanting to associate with Cyrus. She is a good dog.
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