SELENA GOMEZ & THE SCENE - "When the Sun Goes Down" (ALBUM REVIEW)

When Selena Gomez announced that she will be in a band, I thought it would some gimmick that she adopted in order to be different from her other Disney music peers Miley Cyrus and former-BFF (but still friends) Demi Lovato, and thus predicted that it will not do well. But with her 2009 debut album Kiss & Tell, released under her band name Selena Gomez & the Scene, I totally underestimated what I originally thought was a cheesy idea, thanks to a little electropop ditty (and eventual mega-hit) called "Naturally". The band followed up in 2010 with their sophomore effort A Year Without Rain, which, in my opinion, fared better than Kiss & Tell with hits such as "Round & Round". And with this year's When the Sun Goes Down, released a few days ago, I feel that the Scene is rocking at its best.

The album opener is "Love You Like a Love Song", an 80's-inspired song with a hypnotic & addictive chorus that begs to be played in "repeat-peat-peat-peat-peat." It continues with its synthesized vibe with "Bang Bang Bang", which Gomez describes as an "insult/compliment" track about someone who "used to be in your life, and now someone who’s in your life that’s kind of amazing" (Nick Jonas & Justin Bieber, maybe?).

The next track is lead single "Who Says", Gomez's bouncy, light-hearted anthem entry to the increasing slew of power anthems (think "Firework" and "Mean"). "You've got every right to a beautiful life," Gomez ensures the less-than-perfect. The Spanish version of the song, entitled "Dices", serves as the album closer.

The album then gets mellow with "We Own the Night", a semi-ballad co-penned by English singer-songwriter Pixie Lott, who also provided backing vocals for the track. The message of the song is fairly simple: to not constantly dwell in the past or worry about the future; instead, live in and embrace the present moment. It then returns to the dancefloor with "Hit the Lights". (It has the "living-in-the-now" message as well.)

Gomez then gets sexy with the elctronic-influenced "Whiplash". And the star-power for the track is impressive - not only is the track co-produced by Greg Kurstin (Hands - Little Boots), Kurstin also co-wrote it with - guess who - the one and only "Princess of Pop" herself, Britney Spears! This proves that Gomez is comfortable and having fun with showing off her sexy side. "Twisted insanity, fallen humanity, all I want is some tranquility," Gomez fast-talks in the pre-chorus, complete with a British accent.

The album continues with the title track, "When the Sun Goes Down". A cool party track, the song is written by Gomez and band bassist Joey Clement, and co-written and produced by Stefan Abingdon, one-third of British music group The Midnight Beast, famous for their parody of Ke$ha's "TiK ToK" on YouTube. It is then followed by "My Dilemma", a break-up song with a pop-rock melody reminiscent of Coldplay's "Viva La Vida".

Katy Perry contributed to last year's A Year Without Rain with (personal favourite) "Rock God". And she's at it once again with her contribution to When the Sun Goes Down, "That's More Like It", a sassy, cheeky electro-rock girl-power anthem with Gomez demanding for cashmere, diamonds and even a massage from her man!

"Outlaw" is a toned-down floor-filler with Gomez singing in a lower register to complement the song's mellow, dark synths, while "Middle of Nowhere" is a track that not only connects with the listeners, but also gets then jumping on the spot and singing along.

On the whole album, I'm not gonna lie - I was unable find a low point throughout the whole thing! I think each track is addictive and amazing in their own ways, and the messages in some of them were well put-out. With this record, it goes to show that Selena Gomez & the Scene is definitely neither a one-hit wonder, nor is it a cheesy gimmick. And since I originally downloaded the album online, I might consider getting the physical CD now, just because I wish to support this already-shining starlet.

When the Sun Goes Down receives a...

5/5 from me! :)