Ke$ha follows 'Animal' with 'Cannibal'

Since singer Ke$ha broke out a year ago with the proudly liquored-up, 8.5-million-selling single "Tik Tok," she has filled the role of Female Kid Rock - sleazy party girl who unself-consciously loves boys, booze and fun, and has a knack for communicating that exuberance in buzzing, melodic, Auto-Tuned anthems. Her nine-song follow-up to this year's "Animal," also available as a package with the debut, opens with "Cannibal," a whirl of genuinely funny wordplay with zippy lines like "for dessert I'll suck your teeth" and "I eat boys up." There are formulaic pop songs here, such as "The Harold Song," which would work as filler on any Kelly Clarkson or Miley Cyrus album; Ke$ha, who is not a vocal prodigy, obviously enjoys herself far more on the uninhibited "We R Who We Are," which threatens with a playful snarl: "We make the hipsters fall in love when we've got our hot pants on."

Ke$ha

"Cannibal"

GRADE B

BOTTOM LINE Exuberant, "Tik Tok"-like pop mixed with filler