Demi Lovato to release ‘Confident’ on Oct. 16

ANALYSIS/OPINION

Demi Lovato

“Confident” (releases October 16)

Hollywood Records/Island Records/Safehouse Records

If anything, Demi Lovato is a mistress at grabbing our attention. The singer and actress, who recently posed nude and sans any makeup for Vanity Fair, is back with “Confident,” a high-concept, high-energy album for Hollywood Records that shows off Miss Lovato’s talent for crafting venerable synth-pop.

The title track kicks off the album with an upbeat that all but challenges the listener to remain stationary, followed immediately by “Cool for the Summer,” which has been tearing it up on radio play since its debut (it’s also the perfect sendoff to the warmer months). “Old Ways” alternates between mellow and rocking, while “Stone Cold” might best be described as an anti-love song of letting go. Bringing on board Iggy Azalea for backup on the multifacted, hip-hop-inspired “Kingdom Come,” Miss Azalea’s rap provides delightful counterpoint to Miss Lovato’s strident vocals on the track. The middle part of the album loses a bit of steam, and “Lion Heart” strikes the ear as a bit overproduced and trying perhaps too hard, but “Father” is a heartfelt, gospel-infused sendoff, both to its subject and the album.

Albuquerque native Miss Lovato, who suffers from bipolar disorder, has also been pushing Congress to take a better crack at mental health legislation in the wake of mass shootings in the U.S. committed by the mentally unwell, including last week’s horrific incident at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. She will be speaking Tuesday at the National Council for Behavioral Health’s Hill Day in Washington, D.C., as a way of bringing greater focus on the need for continued mental health services to those in need.

“I went through several years of pain and suffering,” she recently told People magazine.