Ashlee Simpson - Bittersweet World

UK pressing of the teen queen's 2008 album featuring three bonus tracks: 'Invisible', 'Pieces Of Me' and 'Boyfriend'. Bittersweet World is the third studio album by singer Ashlee Simpson. She worked on the album with producers Timbaland, Chad Hugo, and Kenna. It has been described by Simpson as a "fun party album" with a "silly and quirky" side and some influence from 1980s music. She describes it as having a more beat-oriented sound than her first two albums, Autobiography and I Am Me, although still retaining some of those albums' guitar-based sound. Polydor. Album Description

Ehhh, she's done much much better

I loved the first cd, loved the 2nd cd even more, but this one is just ehhh. There are a few good songs, but for the most part I was thinking 'what is this?'. It sounds nothing like her other cds and wasnt what I expected at all, and I consider myself a big Ashlee fan. I hope the next cd is more like her first 2. October 13, 2008

A great effort from Ashlee

I got this album when it came out, and I still love it. The songs are catchy and fun, and Ashlee's vocals sound good. She has become someone who is easy to make fun of by the public, which is understandable because of a few bad performances and a lackluster 2nd album, BUT, she bounces back fully with this album. It's just a shame that it will go rather unnoticed because she made a few bad career moves. It may also suffer from the switching of the first single, which was not necessary. This album is mostly upbeat and fun, while sounding more mature than her previous material. My only complaint is the album cover-but that doesn't take away from the music! Standout tracks are:

Boys
Rule Breaker
No Time For Tears
Outta My Head

I also recommend tracking down bonus track Can't Have It All. It's a great tune and should have made the album. Follow You Wherever You Go is another good song about stalking a guy with funny lyrics. September 27, 2008

Ashlee Simpson - Bittersweet World 3.5/10

Finally, Ashlee has decided to stop pretending that she is a punk rocker. With Bittersweet World, the younger, more tone-deaf Simpson sibling has wholeheartedly embraced the `80s, beat-tastic sound that has been gaining speed in the pop world over the years. With Timbaland and Chad Hugo of the Neptunes producing the majority of the record, it comes as no surprise that her latest is a far cry from the faux-rock that characterized her last two albums.

The result is a mixed bag. Luckily, the emphasis on heavy production and synthed-up beats tend to bury Ashlee's vocals in the mix, and her voice sounds almost as doctored as Paris Hilton's did. Lead single "Outta My Head" is built on a nagging guitar beat and a simple drum machine, but sadly the lyrics are ridiculously inane ("what you lookin' at me for huh? / show me respect or I will show you the door"), and Ashlee fails miserably at sounding sassy.

The album isn't totally worthless, however. For every cringe-inducing break-up song ("Little Miss Obsessive") and pointless bad-girl posturing ("Rule Breaker"), there are a couple bright spots: the dark pulse of "Murder" and the whirling guitar pop of "Ragdoll," and no one can ever accuse Ashlee of lacking energy. All in all, Bittersweet World is more of a party than her earlier efforts, but still a plastic, manufactured one at that. August 10, 2008

Boys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

One of my favorite track off the album, Boys possesses this crazy, crazy (good) island feel assisted with simple guitar licks, which we've come to expect from Ash.
10/10
The previous track, Outta My Head (Ay Ya Ya) isn't as good, but you could still dance a bit to it. It was the album's first single.
7.5/10
After Boys, Rule Breaker comes in. If you want to dance to pop music, then get this CD. Rule Breaker is very dance-able. Go, Ash!
8/10
No Time For Tears is up next. It's not very dance-y, but it's amazing for an Ashlee Simpson song.
10/10
Little Miss Obsessive was the first track off the album to grab me big time. I love the lyrics and the wo oah's.
8/10
Ragdoll You can prance around to it but it's kinda boring sometimes.
8/10
The next track is Bittersweet World and...it's better than quite a few of these tracks. The lyrics are good for pop music and the production will make you sway a bit, if not dance.
8/10
What I've Become is another good track. The guitar work although simple is pretty good and the lyrics, nice.
9/10
Hot Stuff is almost filler. Sometimes it's silly, sometimes it's funny. It's the arrangement that is lacking. The main redeeming factors are the "starry" production and the lines: "Feels Like I'm in Candyland/I'm going down the chute again/With unicorns and fairy rooms/I think I've had too much to drink..." part.
6.5/10
"Murder She Wrote, Murder She Wrote". hehe. Remember that 90's song with that Jamaican guy singing that? Anyway, Murder is pleasantly-surprising. Its beat is hot like fire! Timbaland shows up as a guest here.
9/10
Never Dream Alone is a ballad that has minimal distracting production only including vocals from Ashlee, violins and a very simple piano arrangement. It pretty much makes up for the lack of good songs in a row. This track is so intimate and you can get lost in it if you let it take you there.
10/10

94/11 = 8.5454545

8.5454545 = 8.55

4.275

4.27 stars.

end note: Ash took voice lessons and on top of that, doesn't go out of her range too often here and that is the magic that works.

Download No Time For Tears, Boys, Never Dream Alone, What I've Become and Murder.

8/30/08 ~ Since the first day I posted this, a lot of the song scores went up so I changed this CD from a 3 star rating to a 4. July 25, 2008

She's almost there.

I'm not ashamed to say i'm a fan of Ashlee Simpson. I've been a fan since her first album and have stayed a fan even through her 'SNL moment.' I loved the first album. Her second was hit and miss for me. This, I believe is her best so far. One thing about the lyrics they have in the booklet thingy it comes with(or whatever they call the thing) most of the lyrics that are in the thing aren't the same words they're saying in the songs. If you're gonna learn the words to the songs don't rely on the words they give you. So whoever put that together should be fired their job can't be that hard, but i digress.

The music is great, it really is and Ashlee really does sound good. The music isn't about how she's been in some sort of shadow behind her sister and no whining about how nobody understands her. It's got great beats and it's definately got a different sound than what she's experimented with before and it works for her. Nothing on the album is bad and there are at least 4 or 5 that i like to crank the volume to but she's still got some room to grow. I'll leave it at that.
My main point:Give her a chance, at least she's not as bad as Hilary Duff or[sorry to say this] her sister Jessica Simpson. If you're going to buy any of her albums this one is probably your best bet. July 14, 2008

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