Fountain of youth

Sunshine, Hello Kitty). And well, the album’s lead single, Here’s To Never Growing is pretty self-explanatory.

Don’t get me wrong, Lavigne’s album is still top-notch – her lyrics, still able to capture teenage angst. In fact, credit must be given to the singer-songwriter for consistently producing smash hits and remaining relevant in the eyes (and ears) of our ever-evolving, spoilt-forchoice teens and young adult (who were once teen fans of Lavigne when she first became popular) audience after all these years.

But realistically, how many more years does she have before the act – and naturally, her physical self – grows old? Another decade of the same Avril Lavigne would just be plain miserable (Can you imagine a 40-year-old Lavigne still spewing profanities and singing about wanting to get hot and heavy with say ... a skater boy?).

To be fair, while most of the album is dominated by these teenage anthems, Lavigne hints at an artiste who can be just as successful sounding all grown up and matured. She dials it down in Give Me What You Like, a moving ballad about desperately wanting to be loved by someone, even someone broken. And in Hush Hush, a sweet piano-driven number about letting go a lover, Lavigne is almost unrecognisable, showing off the softer side in her voice.

The album cover, too, suggests a change in her image, sporting a sleek, elegantly tied-up hairdo (a notable departure from her usual stick straight blonde do with pink highlights) and her expression serene and understated.

Who knows? Maybe Lavigne is finally growing up.

(Sony Music) THERE’S little to say about the latest The X Factor Australia winner Dami Im’s eponymous release.

What’s the point of coming up with an album featuring studio recordings of performances she gave during her stint at the reality singing competition? Im rehashes her most outstanding works (most of them garnered standing ovations from The X Factor judges) in all 11 tracks on the album, including the winner’s single, Alive.

This being Im’s debut major release, listeners are probably expecting something new, something that would give them an idea of Im’s musical direction. Then again, perhaps the South Koreaborn Australian singer is still finding her musical identity, but given the pressure to capitalise on her win immediately, it seems the safer decision would be to churn out stuff she has done on the show.

For fans of Im, the album is a great collection of studio recordings of the singer at her best. As for those who don’t watch The X Factor Australia, it’s just another covers album.

(Universal Music) NEWS broke two weeks ago that The Wanted has opted to go on a hiatus as soon as it completes its first ever world tour – to the dismay of many fans, no doubt. The announcement came two months after the release of its third studio album Word Of Mouth.

There’s no word yet on when the band members can be expected to reunite but it would be unfortunate if their temporary break is a harbinger of the band’s permanent disbandment, seeing that Word Of Mouth is actually the band’s strongest work yet.

While The Wanted isn’t exactly spectacular or the best thing that ever happened to pop music, the boy band has given us numerous earworms like Glad You Came, Lightning and Chasing The Sun. This latest release boasts of even more infectious tunes such as I Found You, We Own The Night and my guilty pleasure, Walks Like Rihanna – each one becoming successful radio singles.

But unlike many albums, many of Word Of Mouth’s non-singles are surprisingly just as strong.

In fact, Love Sewn is so lyrically and musically destined for radio success I’m (slightly) mad that it hasn’t been released as a single yet. In The Middle has this hardto-shake-off opening line and an equally gripping chorus while Drunk On Love is reminiscent of the band’s breakthrough hit Glad You Came.

But Everybody Knows has to be the album’s most outstanding track, opening up about their struggles with having to break off their relationships in the public eye. Honesty and melodrama – it’s the way to go now since Bruno Mars offered to jump in front of trains and catch grenades for his lover.