The Second Coming

The Second Coming is the fifth studio album by British recording artist Alesha. It was released on June 2, 2008, by Ensemble Entertainment. The album serves as the follow-up to the hugely successful Alesha Is the Queen (2007), which has been described as Alesha's breakthrough release. The recording took place over six months, during which time Alesha released the rarities collection The Good That Won't Come Out (2008).

The Second Coming represents a musical departure from Alesha's earlier work, featuring a foreboding and atmospheric tone in terms of musical and lyrical direction. Alesha collaborated with Shell Ruin, who penned five songs for the album and co-wrote a sixth song. This marked the first in a string of collaborations between the pair, frequently dubbed "Shellesha". Alesha worked on the album in several recording studios around the world, including her home in London, with the intention of creating uptempo, high-energy music. Alesha and Ruin's efforts resulted in a diverse album that sees influences from alternative pop and rock, dance, electronica and hip-hop. Many songs incorporate religious and military themes into lighthearted pop songs, depicting Alesha as both a Messianic figure and a revolutionary. The album features guest vocals from male artists Jack Stevens, Jon Farley and Ryan Dawson.

Upon its release, The Second Coming received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who complimented it as Alesha's most progressive and consistent album. The album was a lightning rod for religious controversy, leading the Vatican to condemn Alesha's "sacrilegous" music and public persona. Rolling Stone described it as one of the most influential albums in modern pop. Singer-songwriter Romo noted The Second Coming as a direct influence on her self-titled release. Commercially, The Second Coming became an international success like its predecessor, reaching the top of the charts in multiple territories. It was certified diamond after selling 1.5 million copies, making it Alesha's second consecutive diamond studio album and third consecutive number one album.

The album was preceded by the single "Tsunami of the Soul", nominated for Best Single and Best Video at the 16th Urapopstar Awards. Four further singles were released from the album, including the chart-topping hits "Original Sin" (with Ryan Dawson) and "Disciplinary"/"Guerrilla". The latter became Alesha's best selling single at the time of release. The album preceded Alesha’s second world tour, the Jesus Christ Supertour.

Background and development
Between 2003 and 2005, Alesha released three moderately successful studio albums, culminating with her first number one album Buried Underneath. In 2007, Alesha released her fourth studio album Alesha Is the Queen, which provided the singer with her global breakthrough. The album became Alesha's first diamond-certified album, spawning six singles including the number one "Fashion Kills" and best seller "The OH in Ohio". In March 2008, Alesha released the rarities collection The Good That Won't Come Out, which celebrated her fifth year in the music industry. The album was accompanied by "Diamonds & Dollars", a number one duet with Putanovska. Alesha began working on her fifth studio album in November 2007, towards the end of the Alesha Is the Queen campaign.

Inspired by Shell Ruin's groundbreaking The Dirty Is Done (2007), Alesha began exploring a more diverse variety of music styles and a new approach to songwriting. Alesha approached Ruin about working on the album. The pair had previously worked together on 2007's "Power Power"; Alesha had also contributed songwriting to Ruin's Kill Pop (2007) and The Dirty Is Done. Ruin ultimately wrote five songs for the album, including "Tsunami of the Soul" and "Disciplinary", and co-wrote another. This led to the first in a long history of songwriting collaborations between Alesha and Ruin, often referred to by the portmanteau "Shellesha". Lead single "Tsunami of the Soul" served as a blueprint for much of the album. The controversy generated by "Power Power" also inspired the lyrics of certain songs. Alesha told Rolling Stone in June 2008, "I needed some really strong songs, and I think [Shell] sort of motivated me to make my songs as good as I can."

Alesha was inspired by innovative artists such as M.I.A. and Santigold, as well as their shared producer Switch. Like Alesha Is the Queen, Alesha also found herself influenced by the left-field production of pop powerhouse Xenomania.

Music and lyrics
Alesha has described The Second Coming as an "edgier" album than its predecessor, Alesha Is the Queen. She further summed the album up as "shapes, colours, street, power, bitch, and brave." The Second Coming is loosely a pop album, drawing heavy influences from subgenres ranging from alternative pop/rock to electronica and dance to hip-hop. Lyrically, Alesha often touches on themes of power and status. These motifs are echoed by Alesha's self-portrayal as either a Messianic or revolutionary figure – sometimes both. Album opener "Tsunami of the Soul", the lead single, is a chaotic, electronica-inspired song written by Shell Ruin. It was described as "bold, sassy, slightly loopy and unbelievably catchy", as well as "the most daring thing Alesha has released". The song talks about Alesha's relationship with the paparazzi. Track two, "Jesus Christ Supermodel", has a "bamboo-stick beat, house-y feel" and contains the lyric "Now I am not a savior but I am the second coming". Its release as a single in July 2008 was delayed and ultimately shelved, although it appeared on the Crucify EP later that year. “Blow Your Speakers Out” was inspired by early 1990s rave music.

"Disciplinary", the second song penned by Ruin, features an army cadence performed by uncredited guest vocalist Jon Farley. Described as a sequel to Ruin's 2007 single "My Teaches" (even saying "This shit sounds like 'My Teaches' part fucking two"), the song features a heavy use of military drums. Alesha takes on the role of a drill sergeant; the chorus begins, "So drop to the floor / I want ten the hard way." Track five, "Original Sin", is a duet with Alesha's protege Ryan Dawson. A "seedy" electropop song, "Original Sin" was said to sound both "state-of-the-art" yet "reminiscent of 1980s London". The lyrics make light of the Biblical tale of original sin – the chorus, with its lyrical interpolation of an Emily Haines & the Soft Skeleton track, says, "There's a new crime, original sin / There's a new crime, let's commit it." "Hunting for Love", penned by Ruin, is an anthemic dance-pop number about looking for love in spite of "battle wounds", while "Sheep & Wolf" is a "synth-driven electroballad". “Smoking Gun (Fuckery)” is the only song on the album co-written by Alesha and Ruin. The song is a brooding, mid-tempo song with electronica overtones, its lyrics lamenting a volatile relationship.

“Guerrilla” is a grime-inspired track with military themes that is “sung with a snarl.” Inkeeping with the title, Alesha incorporates Spanglish lyrics and references important Latin American icons like Eva Perón and Che Guevara. Alesha collaborates with male popstar Jack Stevens on track ten, "Warning! Fragile Popstars". Co-written by Stevens, the duet is "typical Jack Stevens with a smart Alesha spin". Ruin's fourth and fifth contributions, "Devils to the Ground" and "Fear the Call", mark tracks 11 and 12. The former is "a thrilling mixture of Prodigy-style beats and intergalactic synths", while the latter is "a forward-thinking drum-and-bass track." Alesha wrote "The Angels in This City", an indie rock song, by combining pieces of different demo tracks. The lyrics reference Neeley O'Hara, a character in the popular book and film Valley of the Dolls. Alesha was attached to play O'Hara in a remake of the film in 2007; the project would become stuck in development hell. "Timebomb" is an indie pop song with slight New Wave influences, a genre that Alesha would explore further with her next album Bigger Than God (2009) and to an exponentially greater extent with afterhours (2015). "Crucify", the final track on the album, is a mid-tempo electronic track with subtle hip-hop influences. Alesha draws parallels between people living under public scrutiny, such as herself, and the persecution and crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

Reception
The Second Coming received widespread acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 77, based on 37 reviews. A Rolling Stone review dubbed the album “…as close to art as pop music gets.” Talia Kraines of BBC Music labelled the album "yet another unrelenting pop masterpiece" by Alesha, while praising the "challenging pop music" production "without ever losing her sense of fun" and calling Alesha “undoubtedly an icon in the making.” John Lucas of Allmusic considered it "a short, sharp and tight collection of some of the most exciting music in a particularly exciting career" and complimented it for being "a perfectly constructed whole without becoming a tedious homogeny.” A reviewer for Virgin Media rated The Second Coming four and a half out of five starts, describing the album as "ballsy pop with moments of eclecticism which [...] results in hair-curlingly exciting music" and stating that “Alesha excels herself.”

Nick Levine of Digital Spy found the songs "fun, frivolous, catchy, sexy and innovative," and noted that The Second Coming was Alesha’s “ballsiest album to date.” A reviewer for NME reated the album a 7 out of 10, saying that the singer’s career "has been marked by genre-hopping, and lots and lots of headlines,” while commenting that The Second Coming “will continue the trend." In a less enthusiastic review, Jonathan Keefe of Slant Magazine felt that the album is less successful than Alesha Is the Queen because it lacks its predecessor's immediate hooks and clever pop sensibility. Alexis Petridis, writing in The Guardian, felt that The Second Coming is still a "unique" listen in spite of occasionally tuneless songs.

The Second Coming charted at number one upon its release, Alesha’s fourth number one album. It eventually selling 1,502,180 copies after 53 weeks on the chart, becoming Alesha's second diamond-certified album. The album was nominated for Best Album at the 16th Urapopstar Awards but lost.

Promotion
"Tsunami of the Soul" was released as the album’s lead single in May 2008, charting at number two behind URAPS Idol winners Sleazy Sisters. The song and its music video were nominated for Best Single and Best Video at the 16th Urapopstar Awards. Alesha headlined the 2008 Glastonbury Festival alongside Shell Ruin, performing a highly publicized and memorable twenty-six song set that spanned three hours. That evening, Alesha announced her second world tour, the Jesus Christ Supertour. The album’s second single, “Original Sin” (with Ryan Dawson), became Alesha’s fifth number one single in July 2008. Alesha launched her world tour on August 1, 2008 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The costumes were designed by legendary fashion designer Alexander McQueen, with creative input from Alesha herself. The tour generated positive reviews from critics.

Following its release in September 2008, "Disciplinary"/"Guerrilla" became Alesha’s sixth number one single, outselling all of Alesha’s previous singles. Despite this, no music videos were produced for either track (nor "Original Sin"). The Second Coming era culminated with the release of the extended play Crucify, which featured "Jesus Christ Supermodel", "The Angels in This City", "Timebomb", "Crucify" and two exclusive songs, "Boytoy" and "Judas". It continued Alesha's streak of singles to chart within the top two. Alesha concluded the Jesus Christ Supertour on December 8, 2008 in Vancouver, Canada. The costumes were designed by legendary fashion designer Alexander McQueen, with creative input from Alesha herself. The tour generated positive reviews from critics. After its ending, the Jesus Christ Supertour was dubbed as the highest grossing tour ever for a female artist at its time, grossing over US $194.7 million. In March 2009, The Second Coming was re-released following Alesha's collaboration with Indigo Peak, "Filthy Preacher"/"Shoot to Kill". The single charted at number one.

Tour Edition
A tour edition of The Second Coming was released in March 2009. The re-issue includes a dual-sided CD/DVD of bonus material, with the audio side including outtakes and collaborations while the DVD highlights ten live performances from the Jesus Christ Supertour (2008). The tour edition was released simultaneously with a full recording of the concert,  Jesus Christ Supertour: Live at Madison Square Garden. Both releases were preceded by the Indigo Peak collaboration "Filthy Preacher"/"Shoot to Kill", which reached number one on the official singles chart. Alesha's sixth studio album Bigger Than God (2009) and its lead single "Apocalypse City" were released mere weeks later.

In addition to the Indigo Peak singles, the bonus disc includes four other songs. Two had previously appeared on the Crucify EP in 2008, namely "Boytoy" and "Judas". "God's Got a Glowstick" is a cover of Splinter's 2007 top-five hit, as performed on the Jesus Christ Supertour. Alesha's duet with Ryan Oshay, from his album Hi-Fi Popcorn (2008), also appears.