For fans of

Kelly Clarkson, Miley Cyrus, Paramore

Singles to download

‘Skyscraper,’ ‘In Real Life,’ ‘All Night Long’

It’s been a tough year for Disney star Demi Lovato, but she proclaimed her return over the summer with “Skyscraper,” the soaring first single off her new album, “Unbroken.” The aptly named song was the highest-charting solo single of Demi’s career, peaking at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The single featured Demi’s emotional vocals, proving why she deserves to be a recording star. Those who hoped for an album full of mature, emotional songs, however, will be slightly disappointed. There are certainly plenty of emotionally charged ballads on “Unbroken,” including “Lightweight” and “Fix a Heart.” “Give Your Heart a Break” resides in this lane too, but it is “For the Love of a Daughter” that really shines in this category. Although reminiscent of Lindsay Lohan’s “Confessions of a Broken Heart (Daughter to Father),” the song clearly cements Lovato’s place in the industry. Her voice winds beautifully over the track as she tries to convince her father to “put the bottle down.”

Elsewhere, Demi switches genres and soulfully belts on “In Real Life” and “My Love Is Like a Star,” showing her versatility. The biggest problem arises when she regresses to her Disney roots, like in “Who’s That Boy” with current sensation Dev and “You’re My Only Shorty” with Iyaz. Both songs, while possibly appealing to the Radio Disney crowd, fail to impress musically.

“Unbroken” proves that Demi Lovato has a voice and a song to sing, but her vocal adventurousness coupled with a fear to placate her core audience lead to a somewhat scattered album.