**1/2 Geri Halliwell

SCHIZOPHONIC

(Capitol)

Self-reinvention isn't just a pop star's right, it's practically part of the job description. Thus we have The Artist Formerly Known As Ginger kicking off her solo debut (in stores this Tuesday, June 15) with an irresistibly attention-grabbing single, aptly titled "Look at Me," in which she cheekily buries her old persona with a blast of brassy, Shirley Bassey-ish belting. Then again, meet the new Spice, same as the old Spice. Halliwell is still selling "girl power" (i.e., sex, but on a girl's own terms), along with Spice Girls-style lush, catchy, dance pop designed to appeal to the widest possible international audience (with some especially obvious sops to those lucrative Latin and Asian markets). She finally reveals that she can in fact sing; though her voice is thin and not very expressive, it is not lacking in range, color, or technique. And she's determined to prove her versatility as a songwriter, hopping from lite lounge jazz to dreamy torch ballads to vaguely gospely inspirational to quaintly outdated En Vogue-ish R&B. As for the line between stylish eclecticism and bet-hedging calculation, between homage and theft, between tourism and cultural imperialism, Halliwell merrily grinds it into the dust with her platform heel.

-- Gary Susman