It’s hard to believe that it’s been twelve years since Welsh singer-songwriter Donna Lewis released her massively popular ‘I Love You Always Forever,’ a song that is still in rotation on many radio stations and broke records for being the first single to break over one million spins on the radio.

On her latest, In The Pink, Lewis creates a record that is certainly louder, but in many ways, is also very reminiscent to her debut, Now In A Minute. Firstly, Lewis’ voice remains wispy and light, but the album suffers from a case of over-production, utilizing too many overlays and making some tracks far too glossy, lessening the effect that her voice has the capability of creating.

‘Shout,’ the album’s first single, employs a nice, dominant acoustic guitar, but it’s chorus is a bit cringe inducing: “I want to shout it out / I want to laugh out loud / I want to shout it out.” It’s difficult not to think about laundry detergent.

Despite some areas of languidness, there are some highlights: ‘You To Me’ is a pleasant love song, refreshing in that it focuses more on Lewis and not computerized noise. ‘Pink Dress’ is a mellow, percussion driven selection and ‘Shut The Sun Out’ is a supercharged, up-tempo number, primed for a DJ’s twist on the dance floor.

In The Pink is by no means a horrible record, as Lewis is certainly a talented songwriter, penning nearly all of the album herself. But the choice of production here overshadows most of the charm and beauty Lewis normally wields. Those who want their music sans gloss and sheen will certainly be disappointed.

WWW:

Donna Lewis – The official site.
Donna Lewis @ MySpace – Official MySpace page