Britney Spears’ ‘Glory’: Review Revue

Robbie Daw | August 26, 2016 11:16 am

Just how glorious is Glory? If you checked out our review of Britney Spears‘ new album, you’ll know that it’s making us oooooh all over the place, from opening number “Invitation” up through final deluxe edition bonus track “Coupure Electrique.”

For the most part, the rest of the Internet seems to agree that Glory is a notable return to form for the world’s favorite turn-of-the-millennium pop princess. Well, okay — there are a few naysayers. After all, not even B. Spears can please everyone.

Head below to read our roundup of varied opinions on B9 below.

More:: Read our 'Glory'-ous review of Britney Spears' new album

:: Rolling Stone‘s Rob Sheffield declares, “Glory is a welcome comeback for a true pop visionary nobody expected to stick around long enough for a third album, much less a ninth. Has any star pulled off as many comebacks as Britney?”

:: The New York Times was hoping for something a little more personal: “Ms. Spears, with turbulent decades of experience, might connect her life with her songs, as divas do, and find herself forging a stronger bond with listeners. But Glory doesn’t make that reach. It’s as if, after all her fans and fame, Ms. Spears can still only present herself as that most generic pop commodity: a sexpot.”

:: Vanity Fair is feeling the Glory: “The lightness and glee of Glory serve as a marked contrast to Spears’s previous musical offering: 2013’s widely derided Britney Jean, which lacked some of the ‘soul’ and nimbleness of this new collection. Most of these new songs would blend right into any bar playlist or Top 40 rotation, aligned with recent offerings from Selena Gomez or Ellie Goulding.”

:: Newsday concludes, “The thrills on Glory come when Spears takes chances, like on the odd, swaggering ‘Private Show’, which pushes charming Motown through electronic trickery to create a weirdly good time. She sings the hauntingly gorgeous ballad ‘Coupure Electrique’ entirely in French, while bouncing into lilting reggae in bits of ‘Slumber Party’. Those successes show it’s time to let Britney be Britney again.”

:: Attitude gives Spears’ latest a thumbs-up: “Glory is packed full of eccentric, offbeat potential singles which quickly worm their way in to your mind and re-establish Britney as a pop pace-maker, instead of someone playing catch-up. As well as being satisfying in terms of the content, the celebratory note is the genuine feeling that Britney herself is really back.”

:: The Gay Times is even more enthusiastic: “If it’s Britney bangers your after, you’re in for a treat – gone are the generic will.i.am-produced beats of 2013’s Britney Jean (which, let’s be honest, we’d all rather forget) and instead listeners are blessed with the reggae-inspired sound of the insanely catchy ‘Love Me Down’ – seriously, why wasn’t this a single? – and the frenetic ‘Hard To Forget Ya’, which sees Britney try her hardest to get over a ‘creature so hypnotic’ with ‘features so iconic’. Sounds like a pretty wild Grindr hook-up to us.”

:: Finally, PopCrush…well, Jesus, Bradley Stern wrote a novel. Just go read it.

What are your own thoughts on Britney’s Glory? Let us know below, or by hitting us up on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.