American Idol's Allison Iraheta surely got the last laugh on the boys this time around. She avenges her third runner-up placing with a debut album superior to those of the male opponents who outshone her all through season eight of the reality show. Just Like You is a female pop-rock lover's dream, containing the calibre of material that heavy hitters in the genre like Kelly Clarkson, P!nk and Katy Perry should be recording but aren't. What makes Iraheta stand out from other more successful female artists in her age group (she's only 17) is that she has the technique and emotional depth to give the material the type of true substance that would appeal to grown-ups like me. Did I mention also that she plays the guitar? Those pictures you see of her in the booklet aren't just playtime.
First single Friday I'll Be Over U (featured here previously) has failed to make a dent in terms of airplay or digital sales, but the Max Martin-produced track stands on its own as a gem. But the goodness doesn't end there. Wait 'til you hear arena-rocking Robot Love, which interpolates Gary Glitter's classic Rock & Roll parts 1 & 2; this is sampling done right. The album's title track, another Martin contribution, pulls things back a notch and has a place on Hot Adult Contemporary radio. Don't Waste The Pretty would have you convinced that you were listening to B-Side off of P!nk's career-changing Missundaztood album, with its message of self-love. She advises young women not to invest their emotional resources on unappreciative guys. Scars is heartfelt and single-worthy, but again Iraheta is bound to be confused for P!nk with the unfamiliar listener. And later in the album, she actually fully becomes P!nk in taking over a track co-written by that one and American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi, titled No One Else.
