Kelly Clarkson: 'All I Ever Wanted'

One question trumps all others when discussing the new Kelly Clarkson album, so it makes sense to tackle it at the start. Is All I Ever Wanted a return to the sound of her 2005 blockbuster Breakaway? Well, the not terribly snappy answer is yes, for the most part, and especially at the start. In fact, three of All I Ever Wanted's first four tracks feel like close relations to Breakaway's signature hits. Lead single 'My Life Would Suck Without You' apes 'Since U Been Gone' fairly shamelessly, 'Cry' is a teary-eyed power ballad in the 'Because of You' mould and, well, the intros to 'Don't Let Me Stop You' and 'Behind These Hazel Eyes' are almost comically similar.

Elsewhere, the three pillars of the Breakaway sound - heavy guitars, radio-ready production, gloriously unsubtle pop hooks - are all present and correct. Of course, this makes All I Ever Wanted feel like a bit of a retread, especially after Clarkson tried to branch out on 2007's ballsy but commercially unsuccessful My December, but as retreads go this album is remarkably satisfying. Songs like 'I Do Not Hook Up', 'All I Ever Wanted' and 'Cry' have choruses that will fill arenas from Sydney to San Francisco, while even the pair of 'Deluxe Edition' bonus tracks are catchy and well-crafted. Lyrics-wise, there isn't much variety here, with almost every song being about a break-up or reconciliation, but on this form Clarkson could sing the transcript from a Leona Lewis interview and keep you listening.

What's more, the willingness to try something different that Clarkson showed on My December hasn't entirely vanished. A handful of collaborations with OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder have a more electro-infused sound than Clarkson has tried before, with 'If I Can't Have You' sounding a bit like The Killers covering Miley Cyrus's 'Fly On The Wall', while 'Ready' and 'I Want You' draw from The Beatles and 60s girl group pop respectively. Most surprising of all is the snotty pop-punk of 'Whyyawannabringmedown', on which Clarkson snarls the so-daft-it's-brilliant line "I'm not your love monkey".

So, how to view Clarkson's motives here? Well, it's easy to portray All I Ever Wanted as a bit of a sell-out - a return to a tried and tested formula after an album that cost Clarkson her multi-platinum sales figures, her status as an arena-filling live act and even her manager. Then again, playing devil's advocate for a second, could it not be that Clarkson is merely returning to what she does best after working through a few artistic difficulties on My December? Either way, there's no denying the brutal effectiveness of most of these songs and, whatever she may really be thinking, the brilliant way that Kelly Clarkson sings them.