new blood

BLEEDING LOVE
Leona Lewis
Spirit

Rating: B+

It is my knee-jerk reaction to hate anyone who tries to pull a Mariah. So just imagine how much I despised Simon Cowell's comment that Leona Lewis will be up there with the likes of Mariah. Bah! I have heard her winning piece, a cover of Kelly Clarkson's A Moment Like This and it was nowhere near as good as the original.

I was really annoyed at her until I heard Bleeding Love - a song written by Ryan Tedder (of OneRepublic) and Jesse McCartney (yes! Jesse of the Beautiful Soul fame). The simplicity of the background (a marching drum beat and organ chords for that obligatory soul sound) was the perfect avenue to highlight Lewis' vocal range, control and power, and of course, the melisma.

The girl's definitely got talent but Bleeding Love, however fresh it may sound compared to the singles released lately, is still sort of bland. I have listened to her album and she has songs which are far more interesting than this release. It might have been the biggest selling single of 2007 in the United Kingdom but I doubt if it is enough to rank her among the queens.

*******

Closed off from love I didn’t need the pain. Once or twice was enough and it was all in vain. Time starts to pass before you know it you’re frozen.