Last Judgment

Last Judgment, or Last Judgement, is the second greatest hits compilation by British recording artist Alesha. It was released on March 1, 2010, by Ensemble Entertainment; the album marked Alesha's final release with the label, which was dissolved in 2010. Last Judgment consists of two discs: the first disc gathers Alesha's singles from 2007 forward, while the second disc features previously unreleased material. The compilation was released in many different formats including a box set edition. The release follows Alesha's previous greatest hits album, Chic/Freak (2006).

The title Last Judgment is drawn from the number one single "Delusions of Grandeur", released four months before the album. The song's lyrics and production largely influenced the set's new material. Alesha notably favored live instrumentation and layered, theatrical production techniques in the development of Last Judgment. She explored genres such as baroque pop, art rock and trip hop. Alesha collaborated with Shell Ruin prior to her controversial staged death in November 2009; Twisted Disco co-wrote the song "Kukla". The album was preceded by the release of number one singles "Good Mourning" and "Heavens Above Me". In May 2010, the album was re-released to include the double-platinum hit "The Last Temptation", intended to be Alesha's final single.

Last Judgment was generally well received by critics, who responded favorably to the new material. Many reviewers praised Alesha's songwriting and her ability to craft hit singles, while others deemed the collection premature. The greatest hits album was commercially successful, debuting and peaking at number one in many counties. It spent three non-consecutive weeks at number one in the United Kingdom, going on to be certified triple platinum in just a few short months. Alesha embarked on The Reckoning, a sold-out world tour co-headlined with Putanovska. The record-breaking set of shows caused widespread media frenzy in nearly every country Alesha and Putanovska performed in. The tour was followed by Judgment Day, a one-off show at Wembley Stadium, and the music video anthology Theology: The Video Collection.

Background and development
Alesha was first introduced to mainstream audiences in 2003 with the release of her debut single "Predictable". Despite receiving the Best Newcomer award at the 8th Urapopstar Awards, Alesha only found intermittently moderate levels of success. In 2005, following the release of her third studio album Buried Underneath, Alesha earned her first number one single. Subsequent releases proved to be less successful. Alesha reestablished herself as a global pop sensation with the release of her 2007 single "Fashion Kills". Alesha enjoyed immense international success with a trilogy of diamond-certified studio albums – Alesha Is the Queen (2007), The Second Coming (2008) and Bigger Than God (2009). Alesha felt it appropriate to close a chapter of her career with a greatest hits compilation. In spring 2010, Alesha announced that she was pregnant and intended to retire. The album's first disc chronicled the last three years of Alesha's career, while the second disc served as her final studio album. The final song written for Last Judgment was completed just two weeks before the album’s release.

"Fight for You", "Crawl", and "Raise This Flag" were written and produced in collaboration with Shell Ruin; Alesha and Ruin had collaborated extensively since 2007, earning the portmanteau "Shellesha". In November 2009, it was reported that Ruin had tragically died in a car accident following the 17th Urapopstar Awards, affecting Alesha greatly and inspiring the number one single "Good Mourning". A year later, it was revealed that Ruin's death was faked, although the pair would not collaborate again until 2015. Twisted Disco contributed additional lyrics and production to the song "Kukla". In April 2010, shortly after the release of Last Judgment, Alesha penned what would be billed her final single, "The Last Temptation". It was included on the album's deluxe and box set editions.

Previously released material
The greatest hits portion of Last Judgment collects singles from Alesha's previous three studio albums, from "Fashion Kills" onwards. Singles from Alesha Is the Queen include the aforementioned hit, "Just for the Thrills", "London Brat", "Power Power", "The OH in Ohio"/"Candy Cigarettes" and "Those Who Love Me Can Take the Train". Alesha expresses a clear electropop sound with the album's first four singles, before experimenting with "crunk'n'B" on "The OH in Ohio" and indie pop on "Those Who Love Me Can Take the Train". In 2008, Alesha collaborated with Putanovska on the number one duet "Diamonds & Dollars", released to promote the rarities collection The Good That Won't Come Out. The song hinted towards the sonic palette of Alesha's next album The Second Coming (2008). "Tsunami of the Soul" and "Disciplinary" were penned by Shell Ruin. Songs like "Original Sin", "Crucify" and "Jesus Christ Supermodel" convert religious ideals into lighthearted pop songs. Although primarily a pop artist, Alesha became heavily influenced by alternative and electronic music at this point in her career.

Alesha shifted towards a more wholly alternative sound with her sixth studio album Bigger Than God in 2009, which is influenced by a variety of alternative music styles, such as art rock, dub, electronica, folk, glam rock, New Wave and power pop. "Delusions of Grandeur", a duet with Shell Ruin, was released in November 2009. It employed baroque pop and industrial sounds. It was reported that Ruin died in a tragic car accident following the 17th Urapopstar Awards just ahead of the single's release. Alesha then released the electronic ballad "Good Mourning" in January 2010 as a tribute to Ruin. The lyrics detail the grief felt after a failed relationship, but as the song progresses it becomes more evident that the song is about the loss of a loved one. The single became Alesha's first to sell over 400,000 copies. In December 2010, it was revealed that Ruin had staged her death to escape the intensity of paparazzi and the media.

New material
Last Judgment features seven previously unreleased songs, including the lead single "Heavens Above Me". These songs are featured alongside "Delusions of Grandeur" and "Good Mourning" on the album's second disc. The new material emphasizes live instrumentation and layered, theatrical production techniques. "Delusions of Grandeur" played a large role in shaping the new material's sound. Alesha explored a number of musical styles, including baroque pop, art rock and trip hop. Thematically, Alesha drew inspiration from mythology, particularly that of Ancient Greece and Rome. Tales of platonic love and unrequited love reoccur throughout the album.

"The Creation" serves as a foreboding, downtempo opener, blending the creation myth found in Greek mythology with the Bible's Book of Genesis. It is followed by "Artemis", an "urgent, pounding" song that depicts Alesha as the titular Greek goddess of the hunt. Alesha incorporated a sample of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song", which itself is inspired by Norse mythology and features a distinctive, wailing cry from singer Robert Plant. "Fight for You" was a demo composed by Alesha and Shell Ruin, completed by Alesha following Ruin's disappearance. The song express Alesha's rage over the loss of Ruin. Alesha said the lyrics are about "the state of looking for something and almost knowing you're never going to find it." Track four is "Delusions of Grandeur".

"Crawl" is "a bittersweet tale of sisterhood", also inspired by Ruin. It features alternative and trip hop influences. "Heavens Above Me" is a "rousing" baroque pop love song with "gothic melodrama". The song speaks of either unrequited or forbidden love and references the tale of Atlas, who was forced to bear the weight of the world on his back. "Kukla", co-written and additionally produced by Twisted Disco, is an "unflinching art-pop tour-de-force" with "subtle electro-touches". "Raise This Flag", originally intended to serve as Alesha's swansong, echoes the atmospheric, macabre tone of other tracks. It was described as sounding like a "soft rock classic" by Alexis Petridis of The Guardian.

Added to Last Judgment in its re-released editions, "The Last Temptation" is a "euphoric" dance-pop song with influences of electronica and house music. The song references the temptation (and crucifixion) of Christ.

Reception
Contemporary music critics unanimously praised the greatest hits collection. Rolling Stone declared Alesha "the finest single artist this decade has produced." Janna Stetson of The New York Times explained, "Last Judgment is a portrait of the time when Alesha was the defining figure of pop culture." Jim Farber from Entertainment Weekly gave the album an A rating, saying: "More than a mere greatest-hits set, it's hands down the catchiest collection of modern singles." Christy Lemire of the Associated Press stated that it was premature for Alesha to release a greatest hits compilation, but highlighted "Fashion Kills", "Disciplinary" and "Delusions of Grandeur".

Discussing the album’s new material, Ryan Dombal wrote for Pitchfork Media that Alesha "bursts mouth wide wide over garage rock, epic soul, pint-tipping Britbeat, and—best of all—a mystic brand of pop that's part Annie Lennox, Grace Slick, and Joanna Newsom." In a review for The Guardian, Dave Simpson viewed that Alesha "has created a sonic labyrinth of xylophones, percussion, Gregorian chants and werewolves." Genevieve Koski of The A.V. Club felt that "[a]t times, [the new material on] Last Judgment borders on exhausting, careening as it does from one over-the-top track to the next."

Last Judgment became Alesha's seventh number one album. It spent three nonconsecutive weeks at the top of the charts, two upon its initial release and a third in June following the release of its deluxe and box set editions. It was eventually certified triple platinum, indicating 900,000 copies sold. At the 18th Urapopstar Awards, Alesha was named Artist of the Decade, also winning Best Collaboration ("Delusions of Grandeur"), Best Overall Artist and Best Songwriter. Alesha also earned seven other nominations. At the 19th Urapopstar Awards, Alesha won Best Alternative/Rock, Best Female, Best Songwriter, and Best Single and Best Single/Album Art for "The Last Temptation", as well as receiving five other nominations.

Singles
“Heavens Above Me” was released alongside the album in March 2010. The single premiered on 1 February. She performed the song at the 2010 BRIT Awards on 15 February. The music video, inspired by Greek mythology, was directed by Jonas Akerlund. During promotion, Alesha became the face of Roberto Cavalli’s Just Cavalli line. She also announced a worldwide stadium tour, a documentary and a fashion collection.

“The Last Temptation” was released as the album’s second single on 31 May. The music video, directed by Baz Luhrmann, was described as “larger than life” and included parallels with the lives and deaths of Marie Antoinette and Christ. Alesha attended the Cannes Film Festival for the premiere of her documentary film Ragnarök, which premiered around the world in June. Alesha appeared on ‘’The Ellen Show’’, GMTV, The Graham Norton Show, Friday Night with Jonathan Ross, The Oprah Winfrey Show and the Saturday Night Live season finale. Alesha also graced the cover of Interview and Rolling Stone magazines. Líf, a tell-all autobiography, was also released. Alesha performed a “final” concert, dubbed Judgment Day, at Wembley Stadium on 12 June.

Tour
The Reckoning, a joint tour with Putanovska, was announced in February 2010. It kicked off in Buenos Aires, Argentina on 3 April and concluded with a series of concerts in Manchester and London. Ticket sales sold out in record time. Each tour date was met with a great deal of attention in its respective city or country, causing a media frenzy and being billed a "worldwide phenomenon." The record-shattering tour was met with widespread acclaim from contemporary music critics. The Reckoning garnered a total of US$251 million after just 45 shows.