Home > Los Angeles Music > CD Review > Danity Kane, 'Welcome to the Dollhouse'

Backstory: The ladies of this five-member pop group were cast over the course of two seasons of “Making the Band,” the popular MTV reality series helmed by music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs. So far, the television show has translated into platinum sales; Danity Kane’s 2006 self-titled debut even kept the almighty OutKast out of the number one spot, and they’re out to prove it was no fluke.

Why you should care: There are some fantastically catchy songs here, like the house-inflected single “Damaged,” the gospel-reminiscent “Is Anybody Listening?” and the saucily shuffling “Lights Out” (penned by the most talented DK member, Dawn Richard). One episode of the program finds the ladies pouting over how many ballads they’ve been given, but there’s a merciful balance between slower cuts and peppier jams.

Verdict: Taken as a whole, “Welcome to the Dollhouse” seems confused as to its intended audience. “Making the Band” draws a largely female audience, aged from tweens to early thirties, and the ladies mention on the show that they’d like to go for an international pop listenership on this one. But songs like “Strip Tease” and “Ecstasy” (featuring Miami rapper Rick Ross) are definitely more for the fellas. The theme of the title plays out over a weak intro by Diddy and casts the ladies as toy dolls, in sharp contradiction to their vocalized desires to be seen as strong, independent women.

X-Factor: The “Making the Band” franchise continues to attempt to impact the charts, with at least one more scheduled release this year: the self-titled debut from Day26, the male R&B quintet picked over the course of the 2007 season and named for the day they were picked. A third release, from Donnie J. (a solo singer aiming for a Justin Timberlake vibe), has not yet been slated but may also drop in 2008.

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