I'll admit, my first impression of this album upon listening the first time around wasn't that good. I'll tell you why... I saw too many Avril Lavigne similarities. Especially the "woah... oh oh" sounds Avril has made popular. However, I did not let that deter me from listening to the album with an open mind.

Upon listening to the album 3 or 4 times, I concluded that this is one of the better rock/pop albums I've ever heard; especially by a solo female artist. On Kelly's debut album, she didn't use her voice like she should have. But on this new album, all I can say is, "Wow!". Hands down, Kelly Clarkson has the best singing voice in the music industry today, and hearing her hit some of the notes she hits on this album send chills up and down my body.

There are about 5 or 6 songs on this album that will likely receive radio play, as top singles. "Behind These Hazel Eyes" is Kelly's best song to date, in my opinion. "Because of You" is another fantasic song, as well as "Addicted", and "Hear Me". Let's not forget the smash hit "Breakaway".

With this album, Kelly sort of detached herself from the American Idol label that she's been sporting for the last few years. This is far beyond and cheesy bubble gum pop. This is legit, and Kelly is going to make a huge splash in this industry for years to come.

Veering away somewhat from the more pop-centric slickness of the still admirable THANKFUL, Kelly Clarkson returns seemingly ready to replace Avril Lavigne as pop's new "angst" girl with the appropriately titled BREAKAWAY. While the title track is a lovely and fairly understated vocal affair, it's not the indicative setup for the rest of the disc, which addresses the current state of pop as defined by the likes of Lavigne and lesser talents like Hilary Duff and lip-syncher du jour Ashlee Simpson. That said, Clarkson fairs significantly better than others who've gone this route(take note Ashlee), thanks in part because she comes off far more convincing than the others, not to mention the fact that she's light years ahead of the rest vocally. New single "Since U Been Gone" is a far better indicator of the project--somewhat new wave, but with a strong yet subtle rock undercurrent. That rock "undercurrent" is in fact present throughout much of the disc, highlighted by "Behind Those Hazel Eyes", "Gone", and "Walk Away". And while there's probably no chance in hell she could get away with releasing an album without a few ballads, the slower tunes, while polished, don't cater to the slick, overproduced sound that alot of adult contemporary records cling to("Where Is Your Heart" actually sounds not unlike Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful"). Overall, BREAKAWAY stands not only as a more consistently flowing record, but one that should advance Clarkson to the forefront of pop's top ranks.

The album is packed with songs by great producers, great songwriters and lead by Kelly's amazing voice. It feels like a young woman's diary, filled with pain, pleasure and touch of cynicism that feels just right. This album shows how versatile her voice is, and her complete control & wonderful range of her exquisite vocals. Glancing at the liner notes, we find that Clarkson is credited as either the main writer or as a smaller contributor on several tracks. Looking further, we find she provides all vocals (including all background vocals) throughout the entire disc. Amazing. Nope, no silly posturing, no gratuitous self-promotion, no flashy studio trickery here. Just great, great music from a great artist. This album deserves to become a classic.

'Breakaway', the first song, was written by Avril Lavigne (among others) and Kelly Clarkson does it perfect justice. It's a medium slow one with some fantastic vocals in the chorus and the last verse.

'Since U Been Gone' has an incredibly catchy bridge and chorus, and is a more up-beat contrast to the first song. This song will gets you up and movin' in your seats.

'Behind These Hazel Eyes' has some great guitar, and is similar in structure to 'Since U Been Gone'; a slightly quieter verse compared to a loud-ish chorus. Kelly also co-wrote this song. You'll find yourself singing after you listened to it. Just great

'Because of You' is probably the most powerful ballad on this album, and was again co-written by Clarkson herself. While the vocals are still excellent and she makes good use of her range, her voice is kept gentle to match the style of the song and changes accordingly with it; this song really reflects the immense talent she has.

'Gone' is an uptempo number, but it works perfectly! It's so catchy, very cool chorus & verses. One word: FUN!

'Addicted' is a mid-tempo/dark feel track but combines guitar and other instruments with it! The lyrics are well-written, and it's so haunting! This is definitely one of the best tracks of this album, and you will be `addicted' to it!

'Where Is Your Heart' is another ballad. Kelly really makes you feel emotions through the song very well.

'Walk Away' is quite a funky song, with a really good rhythm. It's hard to stop wiggling away to it in your chair while listening!

'You Found Me' is very easy to listen to, and the chorus is fast paced. The way she sings the verses is good and suits the melody perfectly.

'I Hate Myself For Losing You' is another fantastic song. It quakes with emotion. It soothes. It enchants. Kelly is a masterful & passionate storyteller.

'Hear Me' is another dark power ballad. It starts slowly but explodes at the chorus. The piano is brilliant and the guitar in the chorus is amazing. Another fabulous display of her lyrical ability and her amazing vocal!

`Beautiful Disaster (Live)', this live version, captures the quietness of the song perfectly and it's so beautiful. Kelly's vocal really soar in this song.

All in all, this album is brilliant; the vocals are amazing, and there is a good range of music style from the American Idol winner. Kelly also shows that her talent is in writing music as well; she has co-written a number of songs from the album, all of different varieties. The songs are well written and the vocals are phenomenal she has surpassed American Idol; she's a diva and a force to be reckoned with. Kelly is unstoppable.

To start... For sure, nearly any person can safely say that they've heard the song "Since U Been Gone". However, don't be fooled by the guitars and almost shouted chorus; this is definitely pop. In my opinion, "Since U Been Gone" is actually one of the weaker tracks on the album, so those of you who still love it are in for a treat. This review is kind of long, so those who don't want to read it all should just skip down to the second-to-last paragraph.

The very beginning of the album starts with the title song: Breakaway. Kelly gives off a feeling of quiet desperation, thinking that she'll never amount to anything. Avril Lavigne did write this song, yes, but Kelly did an amazing job putting her own emotion into the song.

After the aforementioned two mega-hits (Breakaway and Since U Been Gone) is her lesser hit, Behind These Hazel Eyes. This song is more tragic and powerful than the first two; Kelly is NOT happy with how things are going, and this is the first time in the album we see this side of Kelly: A sadder side, betrayed countless times, that can't get over this most recent disaster. This side comes up numerous times in the album, and each time shows that Kelly is capable of putting enough emotion into a song to rise above the guitars that are used all-too-often. However, Behind These Hazel Eyes is certainly one of the most memorable songs in the album that says that not everything's as happy as they seem in Kelly's world ("No I don't cry on the outside anymore").

By this point, Kelly does not let up on darker lyrics, and the next track is my favorite. Because of You was written about Kelly's divorced parents, and how her mother and father would put her in the middle of it (She helped write this, and most other, songs on the album). It starts with a simple piano, and shows Kelly's true vocal ability. By the end of the bridge, Kelly hits a note that is higher than many other singers can't reach near, and the very end of the song holds some of the most powerful lyrics of the album ("Because of you, I'm ashamed of my life, because it's empty...").

Gone is the next song, which is almost like a companion to Since U Been Gone. They are about the same thing, essentially, a bad relationship that Kelly's gotten over. It is a good song in its own right, but it's nothing you haven't heard before. On the other hand, it has phenomenal energy, rivaled only by Since U Been Gone and a later track, Walk Away. It should also be important to note the very, very end. There is a backup vocal done by Kelly that is higher than anything I have ever heard. I am unsure that Mariah Carey herself could've pulled this vocal track off.

Addicted was written by Ben Moody, who used to be a guitarist in Evanescence. Addicted certainly shows a slight similarity to some Evanescence songs, and Kelly sounds a little bit similar to Amy, which is a good thing. This shows Kelly's sadder side again, but it gives a feeling of building insanity, and the bridge is the highlight of the song, which makes the song almost feel like a spiraling fall into madness.

Where is Your Heart is probably one of the weaker songs on the album, although it may simply be dwarfed by comparison to a similar song, Because of You. This song is good, and gives Kelly another chance to do the slower songs that she is best suited for, but it's emotional ability is very low compared to Because of You. It's a melodic, pretty song, but Kelly seems like she goes into autopilot for a song.

By the next song, the energy level drastically shoots up. Walk Away is a very rhythmic song, almost like Gone with more aggression. This seems like it's about the part of the relationship where it's almost over, Kelly has decided that her man is not passionate enough, or doesn't seem to care about her enough. I'm sure that there's plenty of frustrated people who can relate. It's not one that you'll want to hear over and over, as the melody can get annoying, but rather one that if you just listen to it once in a while, you'll love it.

You Found Me is the happiest song of the album. It starts out in an amazing way, with Kelly perfectly emoting the verse, which can be summed up in the line: "I've become comfortably numb". She sings it unhappily, but you can almost feel that she's given up on love. Her surprise is your surprise as well, when it suddenly shifts to a happy chorus that perfectly portrays her feelings of surprise and joy when she realizes that love isn't so bad after all. And even when it goes back to the verse, you can feel the difference in the way Kelly emotes the lyrics, even though the melody stays the same. This is when Kelly is at her emotional best.

The next track is significantly darker, and I suspect that it may be connected to You Found Me. I Hate Myself for Losing You has a certain sense of shock, and relates quite well to a statement Kelly made about the album: "Just when you think everything's perfect, 'Oh, look, you're with someone else. That's SUPER.'" The placement was done very well, and the song portrays the self-loathing in more places than the title phrase. It holds a certain lyrics that I liked in particular: "What do you do when you look in the mirror and staring at you is why he's not here?" It even makes a very, very, vague reference to suicide, a generally taboo topic in the pop genre.

The next track, Hear Me, is the last new song on the album, but the verses leave much to be desired, both lyrically and emotionally. Coming right after I Hate Myself For Losing You may be the song's own undoing, as this would be another case of being dwarfed by comparison. It isn't a bad song, simply average, and it's placement would likely have been better after Where Is Your Heart?.

The album finally ends after a very satisfying live performance of Beautiful Disaster. Kelly is the sort of artist who is much better live.

As the bottom line, in this sub-genre of the pop industry (similar artists being Ashlee Simpson and Hilary Duff), it can be difficult to trust the realism of the artists. Many fans ended up feeling betrayed after Ashlee's lip-synching incident, or perhaps after a less-than-pleasant live performance by Hilary. And though Kelly doesn't completely write her own songs, she does help write most of them, and this makes her own performances that much better. The emotion in her voice, her impressive (although occassionally faltering) energy level, and her vocal range and singing ability all come together to create one of the best pop albums of the year.

I look forward to Kelly's future work, especially if she writes her own songs. She has plenty of emotion, and I know that she can do even more with it.

Best Tracks:

"Behind These Hazel Eyes"

"Because of You"

"Addicted"

"I Hate Myself For Losing You"

"Beautiful Disaster (Live)"

The music is innovative, complicated and simple at the same time. Interesting. Infinitely listenable. Both as a whole and within each song--it covers the gammit of rock--country, gothic, pop, funk, punk, alternative, folk--and manages to mix them all in different strengths to produce a sound different than anything you've heard before. Sometimes they grab you immediately, other's are a slower burn--but if you don't come to adore every one, I would be surprised.

Kelly's voice is better then ever and recorded to a quality (both techinically and critically) that I've rarely experienced. She is absolutely amazing. She's surpassed all expectation. It's so much more than runs and riffs and techincal ability.(Though that is ALL there). It's natural talent that manages to skip from discipline to discipline like a world class gymnast, but still establish a style that is unique to Kelly. The power in the most subtle note matches the highest high (and this album has many tracks that take you soaring). She has layered her own backing vocals and the affect is mesmerizing.

The writing is brilliant. Across the board. From lyrics, to arrangements, song construction (I hope they have real violins on tour). The way they all compliment each other to created a mood, a story--emotion. Incredible.

Kelly has managed to produce a sophomore album that will not only permanently seperate her from the flock of American Idols, but the majority of popular music. I would not be surprised to see this become a classic in any music lovers collection.