The New Classic by Iggy Azalea

Iggy Azalea's talent actually shines through - where most modern pop stars are hidden behind production, it's fun just to hear Iggy rap. Her raps reminded me of Pusha T - maybe the comparison isn't very obvious, yet both have the ability to rap a flow that feels strong and intimidating without feeling like they're trying. They're aggressive without being strained. Listening to Iggy shoot out lines has a laid back urgency that is always fun to listen to.

That is why, for the most part, The New Classic fails. It has its highlights - the loopy New Bitch, minimalistic opener Walk the Line - although these tracks work mostly because the production doesn't get in the way. When the guest stars start to move in I was waiting for Iggy's choruses, and when the production started to fill the speakers I was waiting for the tracks to end.

The New Classic does do a good job of creating an image for Iggy, here as the aggressive, no bullshit "nineties chick". It's an image that has her spitting lines like "Fresh in some new shit/Damn, she is too thick, who is this?/Yeah I'm his new bitch" with ease, while feeling completely uneasy and artificial with lines as life affirming as "Keep on living/Keep on breathing/Even when you don't believe it/Keep on climbing/Keep on reaching".

Iggy's persona is a sort of self-knowing version of the gloating personas of rappers like Eminem and Jay Z that a nineties chick like herself would have grown up listening to. On a more focused album a track as focused and claustrophobic as Goddess would feel as aiding of Iggy's persona as an album like Yeezus was to Kanye West's, yet as I say only parts of this album is focused on the right places. Instead The New Classic is a better showcase for Iggy's talents than it is a good listen.