On 'E=MC2,' Mariah Carey has no equal

Mariah Carey's latest CD "E = MC2" hits stores on April 15.

Glenn Gamboa | DROPS

April 15, 2008

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'Uncle." (Should it be "Aunt"?)

With her new album, "E=MC2" (Island Def Jam), Mariah Carey has assembled a collection of perfect little pop pleasures that will charm even the staunchest naysayer.

Carey worked through nearly all her various personal and musical issues throughout the long, six-times-platinum run of 2005's "The Emancipation of Mimi." And all the success shows on "E=MC2."

Not only does Carey get to work with all the best hit makers around - from the unstoppable T-Pain to the masterful Jermaine Dupri - but she has a little extra bounce herself, the deserved swagger of knowing for sure that your ideas are going to work.

There were songs on "Mimi" that felt a little forced, a little too desperate to be liked, but there's none of that on "E=MC2." In fact, the first notes of the album come from one of her patented high-register, dog-whistle flourishes that get her so much grief. But because she surrounds it with the irresistible hip-hop groove of "Migrate" with T-Pain, even that works.

That's only the start of her risk-taking. She adopts a Jamaican accent for the middle of the reggae-tinged "Cruise Control" with Damian Marley to make a plot point, and she pulls it off. It doesn't hurt that the song has a rock-steady hook or that Carey incorporates trappings of reggae style - the sweet harmonies, the organ riffs, as well as a recognizable riddim - into a song that's still distinctively hers.

She goes straight-up, carefree disco for "I'm That Chick," even slipping in some verses from Michael Jackson's "Rock With You" for those who missed the vibe she was going for.

Will that be the No. 1 single that breaks The Beatles' record of 20? Maybe. Carey would need an astonishing four No. 1 singles from "E=MC2" to pass the Fab Four, but the album is so packed with potential that the feat actually is possible.

Between the "We Belong Together"-ish ballads ("Love Story" and "I Stay in Love"), the touching current single "Bye Bye," the T-Pain and Marley collaborations, and the old-school gospel ballad "I Wish You Well," she will have plenty of chances, given the right record company support, which she definitely has these days.

But Carey makes it sound like all that doesn't really matter to her. Throughout "E=MC2," she sounds relaxed and confident, practically daring the listener to resist her, which, as her most recent No. 1 single, the playful "Touch My Body," shows, is almost impossible. She's built one of the year's best albums and she knows it.

E=MC2. Mariah Carey gets the formula right for what will be the soundtrack for 2008. In stores April 15. Grade: A.

ALSO IN STORES. Thrice's next installment in its Alchemy Index series "Vols. 3 & 4: Air and Earth" (Vagrant); Joseph Arthur's second of five EP releases this year, "Crazy Rain" (Lonely Astronaut); the Kooks' "Konk" (Astralwerks); Phantom Planet's "Raise the Dead" (Atlantic); Everclear tackles Hall and Oates and Tommy Tutone in "The Vegas Years" (Capitol); M83's "Saturdays=Youth" (Mute); Tristan Prettyman's "Hello" (Virgin); Ours' "Mercy" (American); and the tween sensation Naked Brothers Band's "I Don't Want to Go to School" (Columbia).

SONG OF THE WEEK. Remember when Jesse McCartney was all doe-eyed and earnest, going on about "beautiful souls"? Well, on his new single "Leavin'" (Hollywood), it seems young Master McCartney has embraced his inner playa. The irresistibly catchy, R&B-tinged track, produced by Tricky and The-Dream, is a sweet slice of springtime fun that picks up where Chris Brown's smash "With You" left off.

And it should give McCartney, who has honed his songwriting chops penning Leona Lewis' "Bleeding Love" with Ryan Tedder, his biggest hit yet.

Contact Glenn Gamboa at 631-843-3434.