Well, that awkward goth phase didn't last long! With all the impatience of an ADD-riddled teen rebel, Avril Lavigne ditched the gloomy façade of her sophomore Under My Skin and dove back into the well-scrubbed mosh pit for her third album, The Best Damn Thing. Frankly, the change in pace comes as a bit of a relief. The serious Avril on Under My Skin never felt genuine -- the shift from the exuberance of "Sk8er Boi" to the meandering ruminations of "Don't Tell Me" and "My Happy Ending" seemed sudden and forced, a misguided attempt to prove that Lavigne was a serious songwriter -- so as soon as The Best Damn Thing opens with the bright ubblegum blast of "Girlfriend" and its cheerleader chant, everything within Avril's world seems right again. If anything, this third album feels even more adolescent than her aggressively catchy-n-shallow debut, Let Go, perhaps because this is an album where Avril is allowed to run wild. She can curse, spit, and strut to her heart's content, she can taunt her rivals and steal their boyfriends, then bitch out the boy for not understanding her once he belongs to her. She impatiently rushes through the power allads -- there are only three of them, all impeccable melodic anthems designed to keep the crossover adult audience Let Go won, all better than their equivalents on Under My Skin -- because she can't wait to get back and raise hell like the spoiled brat that she's thrilled to be. Avril swears like she's just discovered profanity, cheerfully spitting out four-letter words (and their compounds) with glee, but everything she does here she does with unrestrained glee. She truly believes she's the best damn thing you've ever seen, she knows it's all about her -- or, as she shouts on "I Don't Have to Try," "I wear the pants!" -- and if you don't agree, she knows you're wrong and you can go to hell (actually, she'd probably say something a lot stronger). This sense of entitlement will surely rankle anybody who's just a little bit older than Avril's 22 years, who will also find that the perennial Lavigne complaint holds: she ain't no punk, she's a brat that any grizzled old punk will want to beat with a baseball bat. (How do you know if you're one of the old guys? If you recognize the chorus of "Girlfriend" as a total lift from the Rubinoos' "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend," you're an old guy, even if you're 20.) But The Best Damn Thing wasn't made for them, nor was it made with any sense (or even regard) for the past: it was made to exist totally in the moment, in a time when a moment speeds by faster than light. And, frankly, that's what good about The Best Damn Thing: it's as exuberant, irreverent, and exciting as any other ubblegum pop, defiantly silly and shallow, but also deliriously hooky. If Lavigne didn't have the hooks -- if neither "Girlfriend" nor the title track weren't driven by cheerleader chants, if "Everything Back But You" didn't snarl like prime Green Day, if "I Can Do Better" didn't soar on its chorus -- her snotty attitude would be unbearable, but these are terrific, addictive pop songs that are harder and tougher yet feel fresher and lighter than her big hits from Let Go. True, this is far from deep, but Under My Skin proved that a deep Avril is a dull Avril. The Best Damn Thing, in contrast, builds on every one of her bratty strengths, which makes for ridiculously catchy pop -- the kind of music that provides a soundtrack for teens and guilty pleasures for everyone else. [The Best Damn Thing is available in a deluxe edition containing a bonus CD. The non-deluxe edition is a clean version of the album without the numerous profanities.]
Because I'm apparently a glutton for punishment I bring you Avril Lavigne's "The Best Damn Thing": A Review. Strap in, this is going to be a bumpy ride.Now I don't think it's too hard for you loyal readers to understand, but I've never owned or listened to an Avril Lavigne album ever, ever. I'm aware of her "fame" and I understand it involves wearing men's ties, wife-beaters and striped socks o...
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Because I'm apparently a glutton for punishment I bring you Avril Lavigne's "The Best Damn Thing": A Review. Strap in, this is going to be a bumpy ride.Now I don't think it's too hard for you loyal readers to understand, but I've never owned or listened to an Avril Lavigne album ever, ever. I'm aware of her "fame" and I understand it involves wearing men's ties, wife-beaters and striped socks o...
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I hate myself for liking this song, but it's fun and catchy.I love it when she sings/says "motherfucking princess." Seriously, this song-style reminds me of Toni Basil's "Mickey." I think that's why I like it so much.
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Wanna play the new game “What Song Does Avril Lavigne Rip Off Here?”Always in the mood for gossip we found yet another reason why Avril Lavigne should be keeping herself in solitary confinement at PerezHilton.com. Another song off the pop stars album The Best Damn Thing has an uncanny similarity to a track off Fatherfucker by electroclash hottie Peaches. Avril’s “I Don’t Have To Try” a
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So, my highschool is putting on the play Singin' in the Rain and my best friend is going to be Don Lockwood. At first he was telling me it was going to suck because the guy who is going to play Cosmo was getting high instead of coming to theater practice and then today there was a matinee for the middle school and he did everything perfectly..so I guess the drugs were helping him remember all o...
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Lack of time has kept me away from Mog and all of its wonderful music goodness lately, but can somebody please tell me why I can't get this song out of my head?
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u r going to love it!!!!!!!!!!!
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--- - |- Filed under: Potent Quotables Spinner.com: "One of my favorite girls [was blond]. So we were like, 'you have to have brown hair.' You're not going to see another blonde on stage." --Avril Lavigne In a recent interview, the notoriously cocky singer explained why she can be the only golden... Read more ~~- Avril Lavigne
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Hey Ya'llThis song 4m Avril Lavigne is awesome... if u feel there is some one missing in ur life listen 2 dis it roks..... i always love a sing along 2 dis song... CHECK IT OUT!!!!!!
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| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Girlfriend |
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| 2 I Can Do Better |
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| 3 Runaway |
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| 4 The Best Damn Thing |
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| 5 When You're Gone |
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| 6 Everything Back But You |
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| 7 Hot |
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| 8 Innocence |
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| 9 I Don't Have to Try |
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| 10 One of Those Girls |
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| 11 Contagious |
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| 12 Keep Holding On |
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 "The Best Damn Thing")
