:: Vanessa Hudgens - Identified

Vanessa Hudgens

Teen queen Vanessa Hudgens, of the unbelievably successful High School Musical franchise, has once again decided to try her luck on the music scene with her second album Identified. If the news that this is her second CD, yes she released one back in 2006, shocked you, then rest assured because her new album doesn't contain anything else even remotely shocking. Vanessa is definitely not pioneering the kiddie-TV-actress-turned-songstress. Like Miley Cyrus and Hilary Duff before her, Vanessa is attempting to translate her incredible success on TV into a music career. Unfortunately Identified won't be winning a Grammy any time soon. Completely G-rated, not like Vanessa's recent Internet sex scandal, the album remains very Disney, with all the suggestion and sultriness of Margaret Thatcher.

Sadly for Vanessa, she actually has quite a good voice but few songs allow her to show it off. Soft and slow ballads like “Don‘t Leave” and “Don't Ask Why” aren't all that bad. The lyrics are romantic and the back up acoustic guitar is a nice compliment to Vanessa's sugary pop vocals. Expressing the loneliness she'd experience if her baby boy ever left her, Vanessa sounds very sincere and you can easily imagine young lovesick teens singing along. But just when you were thinking, 'maybe Vanessa can pull this off if she sticks to pop,’ you stumble along a song like “Sneakernight”. The first single released, “Sneakernight” is effectively a failed attempt by Vanessa to be more R&B. The vocals are far too high for her and the piano is burlesque without the sass. With the exception of the other ballads on the album, like “Papercut”, which has a surprising about of depth, it's all downhill from here. “Party on the Moon” and “Amazed” are effectively auto-tuned disasters and as corny as their titles sound. With an electro-pop feel, the vocals on both tracks have been touched up with a dance vibe and some rap bridges, but they don't really work at all. While Identified doesn't achieve the more mature sound it hoped for, it's not a complete failure. After all, Vanessa, no matter how sassy she feels, needs to cater to her main fan base:pre-teens. In this light, Identified achieves what it set out to do. The tracks are sweet and relatable. Parents need not worry about any hidden sexual innuendos or sultry suggestions. And for young girls everywhere, Identified is the music they love and the perfect pop album, nothing more and nothing less.