Beyoncé 'œsounds strangely desperate on her second solo album,' said Jon Pareles in The New York Times. She's shrill, rising to notes above her comfortable range. She's obsessive, rolling out chants rather than melodies and beating them into the ground. And if we can gather any truth from the lyrics on a celebrity's pop album, she's increasingly insecure and angry over her relationship with rap mogul Jay-Z. 'œWhat about my body, body? / You don't want my body, body,' she whines on 'œKitty Kat.' 'œCrazy in Love' no more, Beyoncé aims to negotiate the terms of an adult relationship within a grown-up album, instead of singing the same programmed material that her dad/manager has fed her in the past. But somewhere along the way, the new Beyoncé forgot to add 'œsomething you can hum,' said Jim Farber in the New York Daily News. B'day has grit, funk, and attitude, but nary a melody. Incredible vocals are wasted on the sprawling ballad 'œListen' and the messy Jay-Z duet 'œUpgrade U.' Yes, there are missteps, said Sarah Rodman in The Boston Globe. But that's because Beyoncé 'œchose to dig a little deeper and take a few chances.' The record's best song is 'œIrreplaceable,' on which the narrator informs her wavering lover that he'd better appreciate what he has, because he's far from irreplaceable. The message of a song like that, more emotionally upfront than 'œBills Bills Bills,' proves that Beyoncé has graduated from teen pop forever.
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