Final verdict: 8/10 ★★★★☆
I’m not sure whether I’ve ever expressed this opinion out in the open, but man, I’m really not a fan of Taylor Swift. Questionable ethics aside, her music is… nothing to me, and that is her greatest sin in my humble opinion. To my ears, it is a big, meaty slab of aural nothingness; a waste of my goddamn time. But before any potential Swiftie readers track my precise location and brutally murder me and my entire lineage in our sleep; I will declare that 2014’s “1989” is one album of hers that I can get behind. It is a platonically ideal pop album on so many levels – I have no choice but to respect it. And that is what brings me to today’s subject; Amber Gomez’s “I’m Not Black and Blue,” from the album “For Those Who Couldn’t Keep Me.”
The context is interesting (if of little convicting value) here; Ms. Gomez has previously served as the lead vocalist for pop group Venus In Bluejeans, with which she had a hit for their 2006 cover of the classic Beatles song “Across the Universe.” She’s also been a prolific songwriter in her own right, scoring moderate radio hits with songs she’s contributed to other acts. Her record “For Those Who Couldn’t Keep Me” was recently remixed and remastered, and made available on Bandcamp. With frequent collaborators Les Fradkin and Loretta Pieper Fradkin holding the reigns with regards to production, Gomez went on to give us “I’m Not Black and Blue,” a song that really reminded me of Taylor Swift’s “1989” in both songwriting and production – which is where I tie this back to the Taylor Swift rampage-esque introduction I gave this piece for no reason other than the fact I have free will.
And yeah, you see, this song is very early 2010s-adjacent (which totally checks out if you consider that Gomez’s inspirations include none other than early 2010s queen Katy Perry). It’s very pop, very straight-forward, and a little Max Martin-esque at times – this is sort of kind of a compliment, because if you are to ask me, pop music absolutely peaked in the early 2010s. A pop renaissance of sorts; while not all the music to come out of that era was good, a lot of songs from that time are the first to come to mind when I hear the phrase “pop music” – again, sort of kind of a compliment. “I’m Not Black and Blue” is very much definitive of that aesthetic, and between you and me – I quite dig it for that!
I do feel a certain folk-pop energy permeating all layers of this song, but at the very surface, what really gets you is these ginormous electropop synthesizers. The hooks are definitely there and they do certainly pack a punch, so no complaints on that front either; the songwriting is disarmingly ordinary yet concise and effective. Between that fact and the hyper-poppy arrangements this song has on boast, I feel confident in saying this is 2010s pop at its purest – yes, even if it reminds me of my much-beloathed Taylor Swift circa “1989” (the album, not the year) a fair amount. Yet I am willing to accept it as a net positive. Lord have mercy on my sorry soul, for I have problems. 8/10.
LINKS:
https://ambergomez.bandcamp.com/track/im-not-black-and-blue https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584447590527
https://www.amazon.com/music/player/artists/B004SUTKOU/amber-gomez
https://www.reverbnation.com/ambergomez
Silia 
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