Alicia Keys: 'The Element Of Freedom'

Alicia Keys' fourth album begins with a rather pompous spoken word intro that purports to explain its rather pompous title. "And the day came when the risk it took to remain tightly-closed in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to bloom," Keys recites piously. "This is The Element of Freedom." Well, thanks for clearing that up love. However, coupled with the way Keys has sold the record – "I know you're going to be shocked," she informed one Yank hack, "You're going to hear things that you probably didn't think that I would sound like" – it's not too tricky to work out what she's getting at. Her classy soul-pop stylings may have nabbed her a dozen Grammys and worldwide record sales of 30m, but they've also earned her a reputation for being, well, a trifle dull.

Keys' spunky patter, however, can't help being undermined by lead single 'Doesn't Mean Anything', a cross between 'No One' and 'If I Ain't Got You' that feels as familiar as your favourite pair of PJ bottoms. Thankfully, it's a misleading amuse bouche. Keys hasn't indulged a hitherto hidden passion for heavy metal or hired David Guetta to give her a clubtastic makeover, but she's certainly expanded her sonic palette here. Opener 'Love Is Blind' adds 80s-style drum programming and lashings of synthy atmospherics to her usual piano balladry, a trick that's repeated frequently across the album, most notably on excellent second single 'Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart'. With its thumping syn-drums, spooky keyboards and lyrics touching on sexual frustration, it's perhaps the most startling thing Keys has recorded.

Nor do the (mild) surprises end there. The funky, flirty 'This Bed' tips its cap towards vintage Prince, 'Love Is The Sea' rides a languid reggae groove that suits Keys rather well, and Beyoncé nearly manages to jolt Keys out of her midtempo comfort zone on 'Put In A Love Song', encouraging "A" to show her sassy side over bootyshakin' Swiss Beatz rhythms. There are a couple of less interesting tracks towards the end, and much of Freedom does take a few plays to reveal its charms, but mostly it's a case of The Girl Done Good. If Keys hasn't stepped out of the box entirely, she's certainly popped her head over the rim to see what the world beyond looks like.

Well, at least in terms of her music. Lyrically she remains wedded to cliché – through the deepest waters, she won't let you drown. She'll be the rising moon after the setting sun. Oh, and the water you need in a desert land. Look at the title of a Keys song – 'Love Is Blind', 'That's How Strong My Love Is', 'How It Feels To Fly' - and you generally know what it's going to be about. However, thanks to that voice and her knack for a timeless-sounding melody, she can make even the hackneyed sound classic, which is presumably why Jay-Z recruited her to sing the best hook of his career on 'Empire State Of Mind'. Incidentally, the solo version that rounds off Freedom is, like much of the album, far more enjoyable than many might have expected.