“Made of Bricks” by Kate Nash

Rating: 1/10

“Made of Bricks” is a complete waste of 13 tracks. Kate Nash would have been better off running her nails down a chalkboard than bringing back her storytelling style she calls singing.

The story goes that, after being rejected from the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, Nash decided to fight back by uploading some of her songs onto MySpace. This garnered attention from fellow MySpace musical sensation Lily Allen.

Nash is marketed as a rock musician, although her album proves to be a disappointment for any true rocker. As a rule, the introduction of a song should entice the listener to want to hear what the singer has to say. Unfortunately, Nash offers several monotonous introductions that make the album seem like one continuous song.

The track “Mariella” uses a light drum sound and the odd clanging of cymbals at the start, and it steers the listener away from having any interest in waiting to hear the lyrics in the first place.

“Pumpkin Soup” switches up the mundane album by adding a twist with a pop-style sound. However, any hope for a switch in the album is tarnished by the song’s ending – which sounds like a pathetic finale in a musical production. Apparently, Nash never let her crushed acting career dreams go.

Worse still is “Mouthwash.” With its scattered and hard-to-follow lyrics, it sounds like a sinister poetry reading. It makes the mind spin as the repetitive, whimsical words never seem to cease.

It is a wonder that MTV has chosen to feature Nash’s last song on the album, “Merry Happy,” during every commercial. When the song is played without the overlaying commercial comments, it is apparent that Nash has difficulty being blunt and focusing her ideas.

The only hope this album has is Nash’s sweet British accent and the interesting guitar playing featured on the track “Foundations.”

The parental advisory on the album is certain to be taken seriously, as it proves Nash’s minimal vocabulary, since every other word is profane. With her monotone singing on the album, Nash makes the listener feel like a 5-year-old listening to a lame snack-time story.

Artists like Lily Allen, Jamie T and Just Jack offer hope in place of Nash’s failed attempt in the indie-pop genre. Hopefully, Nash will stick to making acting audition tapes for MySpace instead of unpleasantly harming the ears of youth around the world by recording a new album.