Kaleidoscope

Kaleidoscope is the first extended play by British singer-songwriter Iris. It was released on June 25, 2012 through Next Generation Records. The five-track EP was released to break up the two year gap between Iris' first and second studio album. The tracks draw influence from several genres such as indie pop and hip-hop, despite the EP being mainly described as pop rock. It received mixed to positive reviews from contemporary critics, who praised the singer's sincerity and musical direction, however, felt a full album release would have been better. The EP peaked at #4 and recieved a platinum certification.

Background
Iris orignally released her debut album in 2011, however after the second single (released January 2012) sold poorly, Iris cancelled her music career and quit the industry. She moved to Canada for several months with her husband Jason, however she began to miss creating music, and started making a new album from her home. By the Summer, she had completed several tracks for her second studio album. She decided to release a new single in mid-June, which would serve as the album's lead single. Upon the albums completition in early 2013 she would release it alongside a second single. However she soon realised that by the time the second single came, the new single would be seven/eight months old and decided to release a five-track EP instead, to break up the gap between her 2011 debut and 2013 follow-up. She also managed to sign a contract with Next Generation Records after label boss Coral Harris was impressed with her debut album, and signed her on the spot after one live performance to her. However Iris revealed the conditions of this deal were that she had complete musical input and control over the release.

The album's title was revealed on May 28, 2012. The reason for naming the EP "Kaleidoscope" was revealed, with a spokesperson for the singer stating: "The last album was very dark, very grim. She had come from a dark place and vented that out. This next release is a kaleidoscope. Like the fusion of patterns and colours in a kaleidoscope, this EP fuses many different themes, emotions and sounds. It's got the dark areas still such as when Iris lost one of her three unborn babies, but it still has new positives, since she's now married, and her fears but excitment of being a mother." Iris herself has confirmed the album is like a personal story of her life over the past year.

Critical Reception
The EP has recieved extremelly positive reviews from critics. Phil Johnson from The Independent stated the EP was "a thing of beauty" and stated "upon hearing Iris's debut album, I thought she had peaked too early. Upon my first listen to Kaleidoscope today, I have been proven wrong. Never has an album been so dark, so raw and so personal. Every single word sung is straight from the heart, and that's the best kind of music." Robert Copsey from Digital Spy also gave a positive review, describing it as "a work of art". He added that "the beauty of someone writting their own songs is that if the song is personal to them, it has the ability to move people. Iris achieves this in all five tracks on the EP."

A review from the Express by Simon Cage also praised the EP, stating "when Iris releases new music, it really is the only time anybody is able to understand what is going on through her head. She might not be able to fully say how she feels, but when she puts it down into a song, the words flow out perfectly."

The BBC gave each track an individual review. "'Thank You' is the perfect album opener. We're about to hear track after track of the pain Iris has gone through, and this is so appropriate, a thank you letter to anyone who has ever hurt her. We're greatful too, as it's produced such artistic music1". The lead single "You Can't Lose Me" was described as "a beautiful ballad which will leave no eye dry. It's selling point is that every note Iris hits comes from her heart, and it really shows". The third track "The Strongest of People" recieved the strongest response, with the BBC calling it "the most heartbreaking and worrying song in the history of music." The song, which shows Iris singing about her attempted suicide recieved mass attention, with it being reffered as "uneasy to listen too" but "for all the right reasons". Arianna DiCorso, who was URAPS Idol 12 with Iris said the song was "the best song Iris had ever written." The fourth track on the album, "Cherry Pie" shows Iris singing to her husband Jason, asking him to come back to her, however she relates it to the 1960's, where she offers to be the perfect housewife and bake him a cherry pie upon his return. The BBC described it as "a big ball of irony sprinkled with mockery and shoved beneath a blonde wig, roots be damned". It was also complimented for it's artistic approach. "This track shows that although every Iris song is about a tragic event in her life, she has the ability to not make you want to cut your wrists to every song, as 'Cherry Pie' lifts the mood and takes a lighthearted spin on her divorce." Many fans expressed their hopes for "Cherry Pie" to be released as the EP's second single. The final track on the album "This Girl Will Survive" was described as "a touching ending, after all the songs about pain, Iris ends by telling us no matter what else is thrown at her, she will survive. And do you not what, we don't think anything could knock down the unstopable force that is Iris."

On the other hand, The Guardian stated they "enjoyed the EP" however felt that "at 5 tracks long, its a frustrating listen. Just as you're really getting into it, it's finished. We'd much rather have had a new album instead."

Charts
Upon it's release, the EP faced stiff competition from Ashley!, Jackson Bradshaw and Edna Albaquorque. It debuted at #4 behind Ashley!, Bradshaw and Ruby and the Gems. Despite this, it had a very dissapointing chart performance compared to Iris' debut album on the chart, and only managed two weeks in the top ten. However, it did hang around in the charts for several months after "You Can't Lose Me" dropped off the charts, and managed to reach platinum certification in it's nineteenth week.

Overall Sales: 319,084