Australia's Rhyme & Reason Mag Previews Memoirs

Rhyme & Reason, Australia's largest and most frequently issued Urban magazine, was this afternoon treated to an exclusive preview of Mariah Carey's 12th studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel. A single CD containing six songs from the album was flown in to Sydney from Island Def Jam's New York offices, accompanied by an IDJ representative. Taking every precaution to avoid leaks of Mariah's new material, phones and recording devices were cloaked before the listening session, with the lone CD set to return to New York along with the IDJ representative.

The release of Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel has been delayed until September 29th as Mariah continues to write and record material alongside a collaborator who is understood to be a writer she worked with in the earlier part of her career. Along with the six cuts previewed by Rhyme & Reason, an additional five or six songs are expected to round out the album.

Mariah has entrusted much of the album's production duties to Tricky Stewart and The-Dream, while long-time friend and collaborator Jermaine Dupri also makes a return for Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, along with hit-maker Carlos "Los DaMystro" McKinney [Usher, R. Kelly, Whitney Houston].

Mariah co-wrote all of the songs previewed, save for "I Want To Know What Love Is" - the remake of Foreigner's chart-topping 1985 single. "I Want To Know What Love Is" is expected to be the album's next single.

While we don't want to give too much away, below is Rhyme & Reason Magazine's brief breakdown of the six songs previewed from Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel:

"CANDY BLING"
Credits: Written by Mariah Carey, Carlos McKinney and Terius Nash. Conducted and produced by Los DaMystro for DaMystro Music LLC/Music Line Entertainment, LLC and produced by Terius "The-Dream" Nash for Radio Killa Records.
Description: A laidback, mid-tempo track set to finger-snaps. At one point, Mariah makes mention of bringing "ODB back".

"OBSESSED"
Credits: Written and produced by Mariah Carey for Maroon Entertainment, Inc., C. "Tricky" Stewart for RedZone Entertainment and Terius "The-Dream" Nash for Radio Killa Records.
Description: You should all be familiar with this one...

"H.A.T.E. U"
Credits: Written and produced by Mariah Carey for Maroon Entertainment, Inc., C. "Tricky" Stewart for RedZone Entertainment and Terius "The-Dream" Nash for Radio Killa Records.
Description: A slower-tempo song which has Mariah wanting to square off with a trifling partner; "I can't wait to face you / I can't wait to hate you".

"STANDING O"
Credits: Written and produced by Mariah Carey for Maroon Entertainment, Inc., C. "Tricky" Stewart for RedZone Entertainment and Terius "The-Dream" Nash for Radio Killa Records.
Description: The "O", of course, stands for "Ovation". This is an unmistakable Dream concoction laid over mid-tempo staccato piano chords and plush synths. The chorus includes Mariah mimicking Dream's signature "oh, oh" vocal punctuations.

"IMPOSSIBLE"
Credits: Written and produced by Mariah Carey for Maroon Entertainment, Inc., C. "Tricky" Stewart for RedZone Entertainment and Terius "The-Dream" Nash for Radio Killa Records.
Description: A woozy, somewhat minimalist slow jam.

"I WANT TO KNOW WHAT LOVE IS"
Credits: Written by Mick Jones. Produced by Mariah Carey for Maroon Entertainment, Inc., C. "Tricky" Stewart for RedZone Entertainment and Big Jim.
Description: Staying true to the original, this piano-lead remake is less an overhaul of the classic 80's hit than it is a modest but impressive update.

( Rhyme & Reason Magazine)