We half expected Aussie teen Gabriella Cilmi to shed her ‘barely legal’ image with a sonic reinvention for her second LP. But we didn’t expect this!
Ten is the sound of Cilmi discovering disco. And possibly sex.
She’s made the explosive pairing of undisputed queen of ’70s disco Donna Summer and uber electro producer Giorgio Moroder as the template for her new sultry, souped-up sound.
It gets off to a great start with the pulsating synths of On A Mission and the dappled sonics of Love Me Cos, while the Xenomania-produced Hearts Don’t Lie is a barnstorming slice of soul disco that wouldn’t have been out of place in NYC’s Studio 54 circa 1977.
Sadly, it ain’t all killer.
Ten loses its mojo in the middle, with some fairly feeble synth ballads which lay waste to Cilmi’s powerful vocals.
But Invisible Girl, a potential chart topper if ever we heard one, and the sensual Amy Winehouse soul of Superman bring Ten back to the boil just in time.
4/5
ALISON GRINTER
