Miley Cyrus’s new album, Bass Persuades, has been given a two-star review after the singer moved towards club music and teamed up with Model/Actriz provocateur Cole Haden.
The record marks a change in direction for Cyrus, who has dropped her surname for the project and embraced a darker, more abrasive sound. Haden’s distorted production and sexually charged style bring an unusual edge to songs including Different Religion, Orbit and Innocent Ways.
However, the collaboration is judged to be more miss than hit. The title track is described as a disco-driven attempt to stir a disaffected generation, but its faltering melody and surreal lyrics are said to leave confusion rather than excitement.
One line in the song asks: “Ghosts went to Bermuda ’cause there’s no one to haunt.”
The review reserves its harshest criticism for Neon Signs, a duet recorded with Andrew Wyatt, the singer-songwriter associated with Miike Snow. The track is characterised as an uncomfortable homage to Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin’s erotic duet Je T’aime… Moi Non Plus.
Despite the album’s failures, Cyrus is praised for continuing to follow an unconventional creative path rather than returning to the style associated with her earlier success. The review notes that Slovak artist Adela is producing chart music closer to Cyrus’s peak sound, while suggesting that Cyrus’s persistence may eventually produce something worthwhile.
At 33, Cyrus is portrayed as an established pop figure whose career reached its high point early, but who has continued to seek out collaborations with outsiders and pursue deliberately strange ideas.
