I can't say I'm falling completely for the big stir over Miley Cyrus. I don't speak as though I am her #1 fan and have a carbon copy of her autograph tattooed to the insides of my eyelids or any nonsense like that. On the other hand, I don't really hate her either. Am I a neutral party? As neutral as we're gonna get. Anyway, we start out with Kicking and Screaming, which is boasting a bit more darker rock than I would have expected from the almost-squeaky-clean Miss Cyrus. The lyrics sound like she's having some serious man issues there. Can't really blame her though; teen angst is some of the most powerful angst out there! And heck, if I had to be around the Jonas Brothers, I'd probably want to make a nasty song as well. But I just can't picture Miley as a gruff person. Luckily, Party In The U.S.A. can easily remedy that. Her first single from the EP, it's extremely radio-friendly (and doing extremely well on the charts as well) with a funky dance-pop hook. Okay, so I like the song. I'm not sure the nationalism will transfer over to other countries as well as it will here, but so be it.

When I Look At You is far more serious and solemn, with the grim piano playing us into a "deep" ballad. Again, it's not too bad (it apparently was good enough to become the next single from the EP), but it won't go down in her discography as one of the "big ones" for her. Actually, it sounds too much like every other ballad. Maybe the upbeat Time Of Our Lives will bring me back up. Let's see... it's a pretty catchy dance-pop number again and shows off her upper octaves. Maybe this one should've been a single, but then again, I'm no Disney executive! Talk Is Cheap follows, and I have to say, it's pretty unimpressive in relation to other songs here. It's pop, but it's so damn generic that I'm not even interested in listening to this faux-glam-rock piece twice. Moving on...

Next up is Obsessed, which pretty much describes most mindless fans. Oop, did I say that out loud and offend a large group of people? Oh well. Here's another ballad, but sounds a bit too familiar -- like all too many country ballads. If imitation is the best form of flattery, then the country genre as a whole must be fully flustered by now. Then, just as we leave on a calm and gentle note, Miley gives us a kick to the groin with a live rendition of Before The Storm, which would have sufficed if the Jonas Brothers didn't show up and pop their wuss-rock cherry all over it. Apparently that song is about Miley's breakup with Nick Jonas... so why in the hell are the Jonas Brothers joining up with her if she broke up with one of them? Must be a standard Disney contract appendix.