Gelatin tends to be fragile and falls all over the place. However, the new voice of Jell-O, Kim DiVine, who is releasing her new album “Five,” does anything but fall apart. DiVine’s new release features a solid collection of songs that reflect every aspect of a relationship ““ from start to finish.
DiVine, a Los Angeles-based indie-pop artist who grew up in Holden, Mass., is not only the new voice of the sweet treat, but she has also had her single “Perfect Kind of Love” featured on the CW’s television show “One Tree Hill.”
“Five” is a compilation of songs that all have a similar sound, but manage to tell a different story.
While it’s easy to realize early on that the songs repeat the same chords and include a similar beat throughout each track, it’s unfortunate that the lyrical content within each song also lacks variation and depth.
“Perfect Kind of Love” opens the album with the lyrics, “I open the door, and there you are standing right before me / You open my hand and put your heart right in.” While the lyrics are delightful and DiVine’s voice gives off a sense of shyness that comes along with meeting a potential love for the first time, the chorus proceeds with “You are my perfect kind of love, love, love, love…” over and over again ““ it gets old quickly.
The song remains upbeat and cheerful, proceeding to describe a date that is going well and the feelings that come along with it ““ very cute, but a lot more could be done to improve the lyrical content.
“Best Thing” is more of a slow song that consists mostly of guitar and DiVine on vocals. The song moves the narrative of the album into the next step of a relationship after a first date ““ the honeymoon stage.
The song, like “Perfect Kind of Love,” is also repetitive with a chorus that mostly consists of “Cause you are the best thing / Oh the best thing / Oh you are the best thing / You might be the best of me” ““ very basic, too basic.
“Easy on Me” also resembles “Perfect Kind of Love,” and it sounds like a song that could be played on a commercial. After hearing the track, it’s fairly evident how DiVine became the voice of the Jell-O jingle. The combination of her voice, trumpets and repeated rhythm in “Easy on Me” is catchy and could easily get listeners singing and bobbing their heads along.
“Easy on Me” is another buoyant and happy-go-lucky pop song with lyrics that include “Cause what you got is what I need / You’re every book I’d like to read / You’re simple, you’re sweet / You’re all that I need.” The song could be the most captivating on the album. This track also reflects the highest point in a relationship (and the album) where everything is as good as it’s going to get.
“Yours to Keep” features basic guitar strumming throughout the entire song, with minimal amounts of drums and keyboards incorporated.
While DiVine keeps a steady pitch level throughout the songs on her album, it could easily be improved with different vocal levels.
The lack in variation make the songs feel all too similar, leading to the listener becoming bored after the first few anthems.
The last track, “Just the Same” ““ one that represents the crossroads stage of a relationship where members of a couple are wondering whether they should continue to pursue the relationship or not ““ ends the album on a not-so-happy note.
In contrast to her other songs, “Just the Same” has much more of a sad and emotional feel. “You said you’d give me the sun / All I got was rain / You said you’d fill my heart with love / All I got is pain / Said it would be different this time / But it hurt just the same.”
While most of the tracks sound similar, “Just the Same” could be the gem that should have been introduced earlier on the track listing. The song serves as a good break from the all-too-happy energy DiVine promotes.
As far as gelatin and the album are concerned, “Five” definitely has what it takes to hold DiVine’s thoughts and feelings together, but it could be missing that secret ingredient to keep people coming back for more.
““ Marjorie Yan
Email Yan at myan@media.ucla.edu.