Miley Cyrus and Her Dead Petz - review and album stream

After the encouraging “Backyard Sessions” informal live clips of Cyrus respectfully covering classic songs, it was tempting to expect the unexpected.Perhaps there was something to this Disney poppet-turned-avenging ballbreaker, after all. And then Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz slipped out as a free download, shorn of major label interference and featuring production by various ex-members of alt-rock group The Flaming Lips and guest appearances by the likes of Ariel Pink and rapper Big Sean. Maybe she would be remembered for something more meaningful than twerking.

Miley Cryus’ “Backyard Sessions” were deceptively promising.

Maybe not. Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz is a wretched 23-song indulgence.

For the most part, the production has a tinny, underfunded indie feel that exposes the leaks in already weak songs. There’s no musical or lyrical cohesion over its sprawl, as she vacillates from the pretend-Portishead vamp of “Evil Is But a Shadow” to the wannabe Lana Del Rey of “Skies”. Power ballads like “Lighter” and “I Get So Scared” sound like demos for her corporate work, while the cod-Dead Can Dance world feel of “Tibetan Bowlzzz” isn’t quite as silly as “Pablow the Blowfish”, at the end of which she actually bursts into tears (I kid you not). Why? Because watching her friends eat sushi reminds Miley of her dead blowfish.

And then there are the songs her record company may have found too risqué, like “Bang Me Box”, where her girl-on-girl urges are played out with plenty of licky-licky and nipple sucking. Oh sorry, that’s the previous song, “Milky Milky Milk”. I get confused sometimes.
Twenty-three tracks! I thought it would never end.

Album stream: