Alessia Cara – Know-It-All (2015)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 47:31 minutes | 551 MB | Genre: Pop
Studio Master, Official Digital Download – Source: HDTracks | @ EP Entertainment, LLC / Def Jam
Rising Canadian pop star Alessia Cara follows up the success of her debut EP Four Pink Walls with this full-length album, featuring songwriting and production collaborations with duo Pop & Oak. Know-It-All includes her breakthrough hit Here along with the four other tracks from the EP and songs written for the album. This deluxe edition contains three bonus tracks, among them an alternate, stripped-down version of Here.
“… (Here) did so much for me. It’s cool and strange that it happened. It wasn’t even supposed to be a single, it just kind of grew online. It’s a huge thing that I never thought would be that thing. It’s been a crazy, strange experience.” –Alessia Cara
The teenage wallflower anthem “Here,” Alessia Cara’s debut for Def Jam, was released in May 2015 and sounded nothing like the hits — such as the Weeknd’s “Earned It,” Omarion’s “Post to Be,” and Rihanna’s “B**** Better Have My Money” — that were at or around the top of Billboard’s R&B chart. Even with instant recognition of the Isaac Hayes sample that drives it, “Here” sounded distinct, not only because its tracing of social anxieties was so palpable, but also because Cara sounded remarkably poised for her age. Three months later, the song appeared on Four Pink Walls, the debut EP from the Canadian singer and songwriter. None of the other four songs eclipsed that Top Ten R&B single, but each one of them was sturdy, fusing and switching between smart pop and R&B constructions as Cara sang about growing up and falling in love. The EP closed with the title track, a melodious and triumphant piece of hip-hop soul where Cara reflected on her early success, knowing she had it in her while in a state of dazed disbelief nonetheless. Four Pink Walls is repeated as the first half of the full-length Know-It-All. Its all-new second half begins with “Wild Things,” a theme for a clique of mild-mannered misfits, and concludes with the tactful “Scars to Your Beautiful,” addressed to girls and women with a negative self-image. Between those two numbers, Cara straightforwardly longs and seeks stability, and then uses substance abuse and amusement park metaphors for a bumpy relationship. At all times, Cara is levelheaded, wise beyond her late-teen years — something that comes across through her observations — and she has a measured delivery and faintly grainy voice to match. Discovered through YouTube, she was smartly set up with Andrew “Pop” Wansel and Warren “Oak” Felder, whose input here as producers and fellow songwriters complements what they’ve done beside the likes of Chrisette Michele, Alicia Keys, Tamia, and especially Elle Varner. Upcoming songwriter Coleridge Tillman (aka Sebastian Kole) also contributes. Going by the level of potential shown here, it’s evident that Cara will eventually need a lot less creative assistance. –AllMusic Review by Andy Kellman
Tracklist:
1 Seventeen 03:33
2 Here 03:17
3 Outlaws 03:23
4 I’m Yours 03:49
5 Four Pink Walls 03:32
6 Wild Things 03:08
7 Stone 03:48
8 Overdose 03:29
9 Stars 03:40
10 Scars To Your Beautiful 03:50
11 Here 03:46
12 River Of Tears 04:14
13 My Song 04:02
Download: