Does any other pop star’s album art talk the talk quite like Rihanna‘s?

Two years ago, the black and gray sheen and jagged metal “R” logo perfectly exemplified the grim, post-apocalyptic noir of Rihanna’s 2009 masterpice Rated R, as the singer menacingly peered out from behind her hand while suited in futuristic space gear, looking like Grace Jones beamed in from the year 3000.

Just a year later in 2010, Rihanna smoldered on the cover of LOUD with her fire engine red coif; her eyes closed and lips pouted with pristine 1970′s disco queen poise (where’s Andy Warhol when you need him?). Accordingly, the collection was largely colored by its StarGate-produced dance floor throbbers (“Only Girl (In The World),” “S&M”) and and airy Island-infused mid-tempo jams (“What’s My Name?” “Man Down”).

With Talk That Talk, her sixth studio album released on November 21, Rihanna has once again rih-invented, this time veering closer toward the Rated R menace, albeit not completely: She’s stripped away the metallic sheen of Rated R and given it a decidedly more street vibe.

Buttoned up in a sleeveless camouflage blouse, she appears sweaty and disheveled, her hair mussed as she grips her forehead. With a hungry glare and a dagger-sharp tongue firmly planted in the corner of her lips, she utterly oozes sex. But this isn’t a candle-lit dinner at the Four Seasons followed by a rose pedal-strewn romp in bed. This is a rough, rowdy back-alley FUCK on break during your mid-day work shift.

And that, in a nutshell, is the essence of Talk That Talk.

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NO, BUT ACTUALLY HOLD THE PHONE AND DROP YOUR BABY RIGHT NOW BECAUSE THIS IS NOT A DRILL.

FIRST OF ALL: Rihanna JUST announced on Twitter this evening that she’ll be Ri-leasing the Dr. Luke-produced “You Da One” on Friday, which will then hit on iTunes on Sunday night. Um, fuck YES! Flawless single cover is flawless.

Now then–let’s get down to bidness.

Beginning this week, Team RiRi has begun the listening sessions for Ri’s upcoming sixth studio album, Talk That Talk.

ALLOW ME TO EXPLAIN FURTHER, FLOPTINA…

And now for the most exciting news in the history of ever: Madame Rihanna is about to kick off her new album campaign with a brand new single: “We Found Love.”

According to AllAccess, “We Found Love” is due to impact mainstream Top 40 radio on October 11. And, according to a buttload of online rumors, she’s premiering the single–produced by Calvin Harris (Kylie Minogue, Sophie Ellis-Bextor)–live this Friday during Brazil’s Rock In Rio concert on September 23.

Princess RiRi even revealed a bit of the lyrics a few days ago on Twitter, which was just retweeted by Calvin Harris:

Sometimes it feels like we find love in the most hopeless place.

MY BODY IS READY.

Loud was released in November of 2010. (iTunes)

Well, here’s one press release I never saw coming!

Sophie Ellis-Bextor‘s long awaited, much anticipated fourth studio album has finally been granted a solid release date in the UK: June 6.

On the same day, La Bex will release her latest single “Starlight,” an utterly lush mixture of chilly vocals and warm Italo-disco pulsations that first leaked a few weeks ago.

Haven’t heard it yet? Click below to hear the upcoming single streaming in full, courtesy of Purple Entertainment!

And now, the full press release:

Sophie Ellis-Bextor will release new single ‘Starlight, the follow-up to the international hit ‘Not Giving Up On Love’, on 6th June followed by her new album ‘Make A Scene’ on the same day.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor is back with album number four, after baby number two, looking and sounding better than ever. With a sound that is a mixture of pop, Disco, Nu-Disco and 1980s electronica, Sophie Ellis-Bextor has become established as a multi-platinum selling artist over the past decade. With hit singles such as ‘Take Me Home (A Girl Like Me), ‘Get Over You / Move This Mountain’ and ‘Murder on the Dancefloor’ under her belt, Sophie still remains one of today’s most exciting British female solo artists.

‘Starlight’ is a perfect chilled dance anthem that is instantly catchy with a soft but edgy beat. It is a track that can easily take you from sun lounger by day to nightclub by evening and is the perfect summer anthem.

Sophie’s new album ‘Make A Scene’ is an exciting and energetic pop juggernaut on which Sophie was heavily involved with all parts, including co-writing much of it and working with an in-demand team of writers and producers that includes Freemasons, Greg Kurstin, Calvin Harris, Cathy Dennis, Metronomy, Richard X and Armin Van Buuren.

Two songs on the record come from the renowned Freemasons. The first, ‘Heartbreak (Make Me A Dancer)’ was not just a massive success in the UK but also went on to become one of Sophie’s biggest successes on the continent, particularly Russia where it reached number two in the chart. The second song is the single ‘Bittersweet’ which is a euphoric and emotive epic track with dramatic drum machines and cold eighties synths.

The albums opener ‘Revolution’ was written with Greg Kurstin (Kylie, Lily Allen and Ke$ha) and Cathy Dennis and with its catchy gritty bass and crunching beats it is the perfect upbeat introduction to ‘Make A Scene’. Sophie also worked with Calvin Harris on the album on track ‘Off & On’ which is an edgy, electro track which has the trademark Calvin Harris sound mixed with Sophie’s smooth vocals, and is sure to be a hit.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor emerged ten years ago with rare poise amidst the most memorable chart scuffle since Brit pop. ‘Groovejet (If This Ain’t Love)’ with Italian producer Spiller, her debut solo release (after splitting with rock band The Audience), has recently been awarded the astonishing accolade of the decade’s most played track on radio.

Sophie will be touring the UK this summer alongside both Erasure and Bryan Ferry as well as performing at a host of boutique UK festivals.

I’M SO EXCITED!

Put your hands up for The Ting Tings!

I just stumbled upon the sweet little shout out above in my inbox tonight. Very nice…thank you much, Ting Tings!

The duo’s latest single–the Calvin Harris-produced “Hands”–is currently impacting the charts overseas as the first cut from their forthcoming sophomore effort due out in early 2011.

Click above to watch the song’s newly released ’80′s-inspired clip: Loads of sexy factory workers, suggestive machinery motions, and Little Boots-ian kaleidoscopic camera work. Nice! Oh yeah, and they’re so in the Illuminati. Just look at those triangles!

“Hands” was released on October 11 in the UK. (iTunes UK)

Working with Kylie is like working with every artist I have ever wanted to and continues to be as exciting and fresh every time we do something new.

As promised, here comes part two of my interview with the sensational producer, remixer, songwriter and musical director (amongst other titles!), Mr. Steve Anderson.

Go ahead and read on to learn about Anderson’s unreleased electro-ballad with Britney (“Grow”) and much, much more Kylie gossip (Unreleased tracks! Scrapped setlist ideas!), as well as Anderson’s thoughts on remixing, the music industry today (including a killer list of artists to watch), and his latest project: Launching his latest chanteuse Elouise into the seemingly impenetrable territory that is North America.

Click “Read More…” to read the full second half of the interview.

Missed part one? Or just want to brush up on last week’s installment? Click here to see the first half!

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In case you didn’t know, Kylie Minogue is a legend.

Despite the pop singer’s unjustly limited visibility in the North American market, Kylie Minogue is a beloved musical icon in most other territories around the world. Her sheer popularity and nearly revered status is to such a degree that the only real way to describe it would be–at the risk of a barrage of anonymous heckling–to that of her contemporary, Madonna.

It is a wonder to think, then, that after over 23 years in the music industry, 11 studio albums, and over 68 million albums sold, following some of the most incredible international career highs and record-breaking accomplishments of a female musician in modern pop history, Kylie Minogue has only just now crafted one of her best records to date.

When it was announced that Kylie would begin working with legendary pop producer Stuart Price in the middle of 2009, the collaboration was almost universally celebrated amongst fans. Then again, it wasn’t altogether that surprising of a collaboration either.

Price is, of course, responsible for some truly killer modern disco records, including The Killers‘ Day & Age, Frankmusik‘s 3 Words, and the Scissor Sisters‘ upcoming Night Work, and of course, Madonna’s legendary Confessions On A Dance Floor. Realistically, it was only a matter of time before the two would unite.

As a result, Aphrodite is exactly the kind of record that one would expect when crossing Kylie Minogue with Stuart Price. That is–one of the most sleek, cohesive releases of her entire catalog. To put it simply: Yes, it does live up to the hype.

The album launches with its first single, “All The Lovers.” Currently a Top 10 single in the UK, the song is a solid representation of the bulk of Aphrodite, though far from the finest cut on the record. In fact, the soaring chorus and glittering electronica offer only a taste of what’s to come.

With much of the record, the producers on the job have taken Kylie’s disco diva connotation and added a more complex, edgier layer of dance production. Cuts like the Calvin Harris-produced, Jake Shears-penned “Too Much” are evidence of this next level sound, sounding something like a thousand glitter-filled balloons bursting all at once inside of an intergalactic vortex.

“Get Outta My Way,” the projected second single off of the album, is bound to be another success on the charts. It also happens to be a somewhat rare turn of defiance for Kylie, a singer best characterized by swooning love ditties and breathy enticements. This song, as Kylie announced to the crowd at Splash before performing the Aphrodite mega-mix, is about respect.

The singer’s confidence is only pushed further with the album’s Nerina Pallot-penned title track. Showcasing Kylie at her bossiest in some time, “Aphrodite” explodes with a militant, foot-stomping beat and a searing bolt of fiery energy: “I’m fierce and I’m feeling mighty / Don’t you mess with me, you don’t want to fight me!” she warns throughout the song’s storming chorus. Judging by the fact that both this song and “Get Out Of My Way” double as the album’s strongest selections, it’s safe to say Kylie wears her sass well.

In “Closer” and “Illusion,” two personal favorite cuts, Minogue and Price divine dark disco magic: The former, a slow-building haunter that shares connections to both her older work (“Confide in Me”) and a glimmer of Madonna’s Confessions; the latter a complex mesh of ’90′s house and Ace of Base-like synthesized bliss. Throw in a relentless throbbing bass and a few sex sessions worth of heavy breathing, and you’ve got nothing short of musical bliss.

Later on, both “Looking For An Angel” and “Everything is Beautiful” function as nothing short of definitions of the word “lush.” Warm, layered slices of piano-encrusted electronica stack one on top of the other as the singer’s lulling voice climbs over the melody : “If I lie with you long enough, I can see the things I’m dreaming of,” she coos during the song’s chorus, “Let’s go through the ritual, until everything is beautiful.”

Then there’s “Cupid Boy,” an unstoppable tour de force of jagged electro, moody guitar strums, and impossible girlish delight. The song features a surging, sonic-powered bridge of distorted vocals and an utter jaw-dropper of a chorus, colored by hard synth rhythms, an angelic chorus, and swelling, echoed swirls. “If only you knew, I shimmer for you,” Kylie coquettishly offers as the song begins, forever producing the same glee-filled moment of euphoria with each listen thereafter. Yes friends–this is what would be referred to as a “Kylie moment.”

But the opening moment of “Cupid Boy” is far from the only “Kylie moment” of the album–the euphoria felt during the middle eight of “All The Lovers,” the glitchy dance breakdown at the end of “Can’t Beat The Feeling,” the hands-in-the-air glee that is the chorus of “Put Your Hands Up (For Love)”–all of these fleeting moments of divinity only add more glow the hot pink, heart-shaped aura that surrounds all things Kylie.

At a time when a new musical endeavor made by a woman in pop over forty may end up looking like a desperate attempt to latch onto the latest trends and cheap production tricks of the girls on top at the moment, Kylie Minogue’s latest could not be perceived as more authentic to her artistry: Aphrodite is literally the essence of Kylie in audio form. The sparkling instrumentals, the euphoric, angelic coos–everything in this album is an authentic, unapologetic encapsulation the stuff of Kylie Minogue.

This isn’t just an incredible album, or even an album of the year (although it most certainly qualifies to win the title for both). As with Madonna’s Confessions or her own sister’s defining triumph, Neon Nights, Aphrodite is a complete and utter musical moment–a release for the ages, and ultimately, a classic in the making that will go on to become a glittering milestone in Kylie Minogue’s already illustrious career.

Earlier today, Muuser Cobraestilo tweeted me with a flurry of rumored Kylie songs and producer names. While I’m not usually one for supporting the rumor mill (it’s a terribly dirty industry), I’m occasionally open to indulging in the delight of what could be. You know, just a little speculation…

Disclaimer: I am not responsible for crushed hearts and ruined dreams if none of the below turn out to be true. Without further ado:

“Love Intervention” (Greg Kurstin/Lindy Robbins)
“Satellite” (Greg Kurstin/Lindy Robbins)
“Robot Love” (Greg Kurstin/Evan Bogart)
“Too Much” (Calvin Harris)
“Ruined” (Diane Warren)
“Beautiful” (Tim Rice-Oxley and Frazer T Smith)
“Aphrodite” (Skylark and Nerina Pallot)
“Put Your Hands Up” (Skylark and Nerina Pallot)
“Better Than Today” (Skylark and Nerina Pallot)

Rumors also suggest a Nervo/Starsmith collaboration as a possible contender for the first single, as suspiciously retweeted and responded to by the Nervo girls themselves.

And now, a fairly convincing piano version of the song, “Put Your Hands Up,” performed by Nerina Pallot for her web series. I could see Kylie covering this, no?