AMG Review of Can't Be Tamed

Heather Phares
All Music Guide

On her second album, Miley Cyrus does everything she can to announce that she has grown up. On Can’t Be Tamed's cover, she’s clad in black, sporting pale skin and hair several shades darker than Hannah Montana blonde. The album’s sound is several shades darker, too, but within reason; while “Liberty Walk”'s bold synths and beats sound edgier than any of Cyrus' previous work, upbeat lyrics keep the song Radio Disney-friendly. Though pop was Cyrus' bread and butter during her Hannah years, she sounds best on the songs that straddle rock and country, including the revved-up cover of Poison's “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” and the anthemic “Two More Lonely People,” which makes the most of her voice and appeal.