Avril's 'Best' ... Isn't

In 2002, Avril Lavigne skated onto the music scene at the ripe old age of 17. Of course, by then she was already a seasoned singer/songwriter just waiting for that big break.

Her first album, Let Go, was a catchy, high school rock/pop/punk collection that explored the angst of teen years and, while including profanity and nods to irresponsible behavior, it encouraged girls to stand up and use the backbone they were born with. The album sports pictures of the pretty little Canadian girl staring out with a decidedly un-Britney-like glare—wrapped in sk8er/punk garb and decorated with raccoon eyeliner. It went multiplatinum in a little over a month.

Album number two, Under My Skin, debuted in 2004 featuring a bit of foul language again, but also a more introspective Lavigne worrying over bad choices and lost love. She spoke of wanting "to step up and be strong," pray and live life more fully. And she made strong statements about promiscuity: "Did I not tell you that I'm not like that girl—the one who gives it all away?"

Out With the Young, In With the (Not-So) Old
Well, it's 2007 and the power-pop princess has the same musical bounce and spray-paint eye makeup, but her new album, The Best D--n Thing (we had to bleep the title; she didn't) displays a very different Avril Lavigne with its pinched vocals, obscene lyrics and jagged shock value.

For example, "Girlfriend" is a punky/pop nod to Toni Basil's cheerleader anthem "Mickey," only this cheer is all about a nasty boyfriend stealer: "Come over here, tell me what I want to hear/Better yet make your girlfriend disappear/I don’t want to hear you say her name ever again/... When's it gonna sink in?/She’s so stupid/What the h--- were you thinking?!/... Don't pretend, I think you know I'm d--n precious/And h--- yeah, I'm the m-----f---ing princess."

See what I mean? Then one track later, she backhands that stolen boyfriend on "I Can Do Better" ("I'm sick of your s--- don't deny/You're a waste of time/I'm sick of this s--- don't ask why"). Punk-inflected songs such as "Everything Back But You" and "I Don't Have to Try" continue the trend and spit out disdainful lyrics such as, "I don't care about anything/Get ready m-----f---er 'cause I'm on the scene."

The girl who wouldn't "give it all away" is now more than happy to tell us how "Hot" her sex life is ("You make me so hot/Make me wanna drop/... I will let you do anything, again and again/Now you're in and you can't get out"). She's married now, sure, but that's not the context of her music. Here she's Little Miss Angry Grrl singing about stolen boyfriends and wasted love.

Even when her friends warn her that a guy isn't good for her in the song "Contagious," Lavigne is willing to compromise and promises, "I will give you everything/I will treat you right/If you just give me a chance/I can prove I'm right," because, "You make me feel so high."

Avril seems to be claiming her twentysomething independence to take and do whatever she pleases. But the resulting performance is a self-focused, hooky screed that sounds more petulantly adolescent than either of her earlier works. This unfortunate maturity regression is also plainly illustrated on the "making of" DVD that comes with the album's Limited Edition initial release. Lavigne and her producers cuss toward the camera and "treat" the fans to footage of the recording sessions where the alcohol flows freely and everyone has a grand ol' time tossing back Limoncello shots.

Best, OK or Worse?
That's not to say The Best D--n Thing is only about slap-downs, sex and booze. It does have a few songs about love and commitment. "When You're Gone" speaks of the singer's surprise at the sense of loss she feels when her loved one isn't there ("When you walk away I count the steps that you take/... I've never felt this way before/Everything that I do reminds me of you"). And the soaring ballad "Keep Holding On," from the movie Eragon, is tacked on for good measure.

It's not enough to save this project. It's not even enough to let me get away with just downgrading Best to "OK." Doing the critical heavy lifting, Entertainment Weekly's senior music writer, Chris Willman, noted, "With The Best D--n Thing, Avril morphs from sk8er outcast to punk Mean Girl." Indeed. Track 2 is titled "I Can Do Better." Track 9, "I Don't Have to Try." There's no contest here between which resolution Lavigne likes better.