Rita Ora may cite Gwen Stefani as her main influence, but it's hard, on the strength of Ora, to see her as anything but the UK's own Rihann-alike, thanks to the formulaic attentions of the usual studio crews – the collective noun being an Aeron of producers, I suggest – such as Stargate, Diplo, Greg Kurstin, Chase & Status and the ubiquitous will.i.am.
There's no shortage of disruptive effects – opener "Facemelt" recalls MIA's dramatic bricolage style, and Chase & Status swathe the Tinie Tempah duet "R.I.P." in grating electronic white noise – but Ora's own personality is hard to pin down amidst the romance and party-time clichés. Only on "Hello, Hi, Goodbye" does the prefabricated brash persona slip, as she lays a touchingly plaintive vocal over the shimmying groove.
Download: How We Do (Party); Hello, Hi, Goodbye
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