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"Avril-Lavigne" CD Cover Download

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Album Description: Limited Edition CD/DVD (NTSC/Region 0) pressing includes a bonus DVD plus five bonus audio tracks: 'Alone', 'I Will Be', 'I Can Do Better' (Acoustic Version), 'Girlfriend' (Mandarin Version) and 'Girlfriend' (Submarines Remix). The bonus DVD features four songs filmed live at the Orange Lounge ('Everything Back But You', 'Girlfriend', 'Hot' and ' When You're Gone') plus three music videos ('Girlfriend', 'When You're Gone' and 'Hot'. Sony/BMG. 2007.The first clue to the sound of Avril Lavigne's third CD, The Best Damn Thing, comes in the form of her kickoff single, "Girlfriend," which is filled with singing, clapping, and cheerleader-style chanting. The song is quite a sonic contrast to her previous disc, Under My Skin, which was considered to be Lavigne's more mature follow-up to her 16 million-selling debut CD, Let Go. Like that debut, The Best Damn Thing will be largely and deeply embraced by teenage girls, and is packed with songs that will create enthusiastic sing-alongs in concert. There are a handful of numbers that will appeal to a wider audience; "Innocence" and disc closer "Keep Holding On" would both fit perfectly in a Gray's Anatomy episode, while the sultry message and solid harmonies in "Hot" will appease ears of many ages. Lavigne's husband, Sum 41 frontman Deryk Whibley makes an appearance as producer and instrumentalist on a handful of tracks; their union, however, seems to have bred more than love. "I Don't Have to Try" and "Everything Back But You" both have a frenetic pace and chorus that is so eerily Sum-like that if they weren't married, a copyright lawsuit might ensue. That aside, the record oscillates between lyrically acerbic fare ("One of Those Girls," "I Can Do Better") and fluffy sugar-pop melodies ("Contagious," "The Best Damn Thing") delivering far more spunk rock than punk rock. --Denise Sheppard

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Avril Lavigne CD Cover Download

Amazon.com Review: With her breakthrough 2002 debut, Let Go, Avril Lavigne tried to market herself as the bona fide alternative to tarty teen queens, Britney and Christina. Her guitar-pop hits were irresistibly bratty but the whole "Complicated" teen pose was a little hard to swallow, especially since two songwriters called the Matrix--who had at least twenty years on the Canadian singer--fed her most of the material. Having had the chance to live a little, Lavigne returns to make good on her angsty image with Under My Skin, an album rippling with delightfully dour melodies and heartfelt lyrics about loneliness ("How Does It Feel") and fractured relationships ("Don't Tell Me"). Is it clichéd? Sure. Will it scare off her necktie and t-shirt wearing fans? Possibly. But there's nothing quite as satisfying as watching a teen-pop icon actually reveal her soul. --Jaan Uhelszki

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Avril Lavigne CD Cover Download

Amazon.com Review: Self-professed skate punk Avril Lavigne sings that she'd "rather be anything but ordinary" on her debut. While the fact that she had a record deal by the age of 16 separates her from the pack, too often Let Go's lyrical shortcomings drag the teenager's musically impressive recording entrée into the realm of the typical. The catchy choruses of Go are substantial, though, thanks to Lavigne's riff-driven melodies and powerful vocals, which at times adopt the unorthodox intonation quirks of fellow Canadian Alanis Morrissette. The nuanced, dynamic "Losing Grip," "My World" (which perfectly captures the ennui of suburbia), and the buoyant power-pop blast "Sk8er Boi" are the collection's highlights. But Lavigne's honest yet awkward words weigh down the likes of "Mobile," "I'm with You," and "Naked." "Nobody's Fool," which displays her Pink-like take-me-as-I-am credo, hints that someday Lavigne's lyrics will match the strength of her music. --Annie Zaleski