It’s no secret that pop icon Britney Spears has been living out her life crises in the public eye over the past few years. With her legal woes, divorce from Kevin Federline, an ongoing custody battle for her two sons, rehab stints, momma drama, panty-less exposures and wild public antics, it’s hard to imagine Spears having any time to return to the studio to record a hit album.

Somehow, the pop star has managed to do just that and offers fans her big comeback album, Blackout. To the surprise of many critics and listeners, the album - unlike Spears - is actually not a hot mess. The album is a bit less bubble gum and a little more club-dance pop. Let’s face it - Spears isn’t the innocent virginal figure in music that she once was, and Blackout matches her newer crazy party girl image.

The album opens with Spears’ first single “Gimme More,” which has been fairly successful despite her disaster of a performance at the MTV Video Music Awards. Spears fights back at her critics with “Piece Of Me,” where she talks about the craziness of living life in the media spotlight. Perhaps Spears is encouraging others to follow her lead with the track “Get Naked.” Almost all of the 12 tracks are danceable and entertaining. Spears obviously assembled an all-star team for this project.

There’s no getting around it. Blackout is the overly-produced, highly-catchy and gimmicky pop album fans expect from artists like Spears. That’s the style and that’s the goal. It’s pretty much mission accomplished. Blackout is a decent offering for what it’s supposed to be minus a couple things. Maybe this is just a personal preference, but Spears tends to overuse the popular pop trend of seductively speaking a few cocky lines over the introduction of her tracks.