Selena Gomez & the Scene - When the Sun Goes Down

on Lavender and White Swirl Vinyl You’d be forgiven if you thought Selena Gomez & the Scene’s third album in three years, 2011's When the Sun Goes Down, might show signs of a dip in quality control due to cranking out albums so quickly. You’d be wrong, though, because When the Sun Goes Down is actually an improvement over 2010's Year Without Rain. Where that record tried to position Gomez as a more serious and adult artist with varying levels of success, here she’s back to mostly being a young and breezy, happy-go-lucky pop singer. With a couple exceptions, the songs are sassier, lighter, and more fun. Her vocals are more spirited, the arrangements less reliant on heavy synths, and overall, there’s a more playful feeling to the record that’s more in keeping with her first album. She bubbles her way through dancefloor-friendly tracks like “Bang Bang Bang” and “That’s More Like It,” smolders a little (on her duet with Pixie Lott “We Own the Night” and "Middle of Nowhere"), and comes