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'Kelis Was Here': She demands respect
08/22/2006 3:03 PM, AP
Brett Johnson
"You don't have to love me/you don't even have to like me/but you will respect me," Kelis asserts on "Bossy," the delightfully arrogant first single from her third album, "Kelis Was Here."
It's a presumptuous, finger-snapping declaration from an R&B diva whose biggest hit — "Milkshake" off 2003's "Tasty" — mentioned how her body, not her brains, brought all the boys to the yard.
But given the unexpected turns she takes on her latest disc, her demand is warranted. Not merely a sexpot with attitude, Kelis is equally wont to be a starry-eyed romantic ("Trilogy"), a devout lover ("Till the Wheels Fall Off"), or a spiritually connected celeb with a taste for soaring gospel touches ("Lil Star" featuring Cee-Lo).
Few songstresses can match her hot-blooded sneer — "Blindfold Me" is a naughty bedroom romp with blaring, buzzing synths. Yet the album's best moments are mainly devoid of hardcore posturing. As flute whistles accent "Like U," Kelis's breathy come-ons sound endearingly sweet: "I don't just like you/I like you, like you."
Throughout, her vocals — sometimes whisper-thin, other times a husky swoon — give the songs, many of which mine the skeletal, synth-driven sound of '80s New Wave, a decidedly soulful edge.
And when the music stretches beyond electro-pop to include some funk-soul flourishes as on "Circus," she manages to inject its warm rhythms with a reflective optimism. "Should I dive through the circle of fire?" she wonders, before concluding: "No, I'm just gonna be me."
We can all respect that.
Kelis, "Kelis Was Here" (Jive)
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