"Diamonds" Rihanna

As sure as children go back to school and the leaves change color, each fall brings a new Rihanna album. Yesterday, she announced her fourth straight November release (and seventh studio effort in as many years), which was followed today by the debut of lead single, "Diamonds," an aspiring lovers' anthem that falls short with its insipidly repetitive lyrics. On the plus side, the midtempo groove is a refreshing change of pace for the Barbadian pop star; given the opportunity to dig at something a little deeper, she bears flashes of the soul that was frequently missing from her extended foray into dance floor divadom. But there are only so many times that one can hear Rihanna bizarrely sing the line "Shine bright like a diamond" as though she learned it phonetically (hint: much fewer than the 24 times she does it in the song) before this rough gem starts to lose its luster. B-