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The longtime Sporty Spice has apparently put in many hours listening to Garbage over the past few years; that band's techno-guitar meld and sassy female vocals cast a long shadow over Northern Star, Melanie C's first solo album. Replete with cropped hair, a nose ring, and tattoos (real? temporary?), the C-girl leaps fearlessly into alt-rock, admirably ignoring the potential for incongruity. Her vocals may be surprisingly strong, but her songs (written in collaboration with TLC's Lisa Lopes, Ray of Light coproducer William Orbit, and a raft of other pros) are less so. Indeed, "Why" does the rain fall from the sky? C takes time out from slavish Shirley Manson worship to indulge in widescreen balladry ("Closer") and Small Faces-esque Britpop ("Suddenly Monday"). What all this adds up to isn't an embarrassment, but it's hardly a convincing style change either. --Rickey Wright