Avril Lavigne is a girl who knows what she wants. And when it came to writing her eagerly awaited third album, The Best Damn Thing, she had one very clear goal in mind: To make it fun. While touring in 2004 for her last album, Under My Skin, which sold more than 8 million copies worldwide, the Canadian-born punk-pop dynamo found that her favorite songs to play were the faster, more up-tempo songs—so she resolved to make a record that captured the kind of high-spirited, full-throttle energy that she loved to unleash on-stage.
The Best Damn Thing is brimming with gutsy guitar riffs, instantaneously catchy sing-along party-starting choruses, power pop punk, and rebellious rock ’n’ roll attitude. It’s a marked departure from the darker, more introspective tone of Under My Skin—and on tracks such as the defiant, riotous, kiss-off-to-a-cheating-boyfriend “Everything Back But You,” Avril took pleasure in creating scenarios for her lyrics that weren’t, as she says, “straight out of my diary.” The result is a collection of songs that reveal just how far she’s evolved as a songwriter and singer, from the sassy, empowering “I Can Do Better” (one of Avril’s personal favorites) to the irrepressible first single “Girlfriend”—which unexpectedly combines a hip-hop beat with beefy power chords, hand-claps, and a chanted girl-group-style chorus with a punk rock twist—to the emotional ballad “Keep Holding On,” which she wrote at the request of 20th Century Fox for the studio’s fantasy/adventure film Eragon.
As an artist with a keen and well-trained ear for powerful, magnetic pop melodies, Avril was intensely involved in every aspect of The Best Damn Thing’s creation: From being fiercely independent while writing her own songs (“I didn’t have an A&R guy on this record,” she emphasizes. “I knew exactly how I wanted it to sound”), to choosing her producers and musical collaborators, to obsessively going back and tweaking guitar tones and drumbeats in the studio, she worked hard to ensure that it would be her best record yet.
The album features the production skills of Butch Walker (who has also produced The Donnas, American Hi-Fi, and Avril’s second album, Under My Skin), Dr. Luke (Pink, Lady Sovereign), Rob Cavallo (Green Day, My Chemical Romance, Goo Goo Dolls), and her husband Deryck Whibley (from Sum 41). The process turned out to be a blast: “I didn’t know making a record could be so fun,” she says. She was eager to work with her good friend Butch again, as she says, “What’s great about Butch is that he’s a talented artist as well as being an incredible producer.” And about collaborating with Dr. Luke, she adds, “Luke and I had a really good connection and chemistry.” The relaxed atmosphere in the studio comes across in the songs themselves—Avril’s laughter rings out in “I Can Do Better,” and in “Girlfriend” you can hear her, she says, “playing a beer bottle” (by blowing into it) in the last few choruses.
Four of the songs on The Best Damn Thing—“Innocence,” “Hot, “One of Those Girls,” and “Contagious”—were co-written with Avril’s former bandmate Evan Taubenfeld. “Evan is one of my best friends in the world,” she says, affectionately. “He’s been with me since day one”.
Of course, all of the spiky, buoyant energy that drives the album will come to life in the live show that Avril is planning for her tour later this year—she has assembled a new band, and is even bringing along two dancers (“I’m doing choreographed dancing for the first time ever,” she grins. “It’s going to be such a blast”).
A great deal has happened in Avril Lavigne’s life since she released her debut album, Let Go, in 2002, when she was 17 years old. That album snagged 8 Grammy nominations and four Juno Awards (including Album of the Year and New Artist of the Year), spawned the anthemic hit singles “Complicated,” “Sk8ter Boy,” and “I’m With You,” and sold more than 16 million copies world-wide. Under My Skin cemented the Napanee, Ontario native’s superstardom, entering U.S., Canadian, and U.K. charts at 1, unleashing smash singles “Don’t Tell Me” and “My Happy Ending,” and collecting three more Juno Awards along the way.
In 2006, Avril married Sum 41’s Deryck Whibley and branched out into acting, appearing in Richard Linklater’s Fast Food Nation and lending her voice to Dreamworks’ animated film Over the Hedge.
She may be a bit more sophisticated these days, but she’s still peerless, and still fearless. The Best Damn Thing is Avril Lavigne at a new stage in her life; she’s passed through the shadows of teen angst and emerged in a spotlight, ready to have fun and rock out and yes, even dance. It is, just as she intended, the best damn thing she’s ever done.
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The 4th Commandment says "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.Six days shalt thou labor & do all thy work (Exodus 20:8,9).Some choose to go to church, some are just geting home from a Saturday night of serving thier fleshly desires and are too so called tired to make it to church service. Some radio stations play songs of worship, praise & glory to our FATHER. On television there are many devotional shows. GOD is to be served & honoured daily. In all things, everyday 24/7, we should show HIM & give HIM the respect HE deserves (1 Corinthians 10:31 So then, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you may do, do all for the honor & glory of GOD.) You are a gate, you either lead others to GOD, or lead them to the the devil. Regardless of what you say, what you listen to, who you follow or how you lead, we will have to give account for our every action. Wouldn't it be better if we had GOD as our ally? FATHER GOD, make YOUR Presence be known to us in a way that we will turn from sinning against YOU. Help us to not follow after people, places or things that will lead us to greed, selfishness, homosexuality, fornication, violence or drugs. As we study YOUR Word give us the knowledge to live a sacrificial lifestyle, giving YOU 1st place over our time, talents & finances. YOU are our Healer, Provider, & Source. YOU give us every breath we take. What others say or think about us is not more important than obedience to YOU. Do in us what we can not do for ourselves. 1 Peter 3:10 For let him who wants to enjoy life & see good days [good--whether apparent or not] keep his tongue free from evil & his lips from guile (treachery, deceit).
Avril; Checked your account balance recently? Noticed anything untoward about a couple of extra "0's" added on? If in a good mood maybe add another next week or sometime, depends what think. Didn't do it before because it was important that you knew the value of money first so it wouldn't wreck your head. If you don't want them you are most welcome to always send them back. (no prob). Loves, Wesley.
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