To celebrate a decade since the release of her first album, Britney Spears and Jive Records are preparing for the release of a new hit-singles collection, as we also informed you a while back. “Britney Spears The Singles Collection” arrives in stores on November 24, but the track that will sell it, a new single called “3,” has already been released on radio and online.

According to the LA Times, “3” is no different from the tracks that made it on all of Britney’s older albums, although it’s more similar to those included on “Blackout” and “Circus” in that it too is a genuine study in production. The lyrics are off, vaguely (and yet not so) hinting at an invitation to a private party where only three “guests” are allowed. The beat and the sound, though, are the perfect example of how technology can substitute for genuine emotion and even talent, the aforementioned publication says.

“The latest addition to the Britney Spears empire was unveiled this morning: a new cut in ‘3’ that hit on all the hallmarks that have made the Britney brand strong for much of the last decade. Swedish producer Max Martin was behind the boards, the man who helped Britney craft such synthy-dance hits as ‘...Baby One More Time’ and, more recently, ‘If U Seek Amy.’ And the message? The song stays close to the Spears playbook […] deflecting all attention away from her myriad controversies to put the focus squarely on the come-on. ‘Living in sin is the new thing,’ Spears coos in the lyrics, but the topic is old news for her.” the LA Times writes.

Then again, Britney has always managed to generate controversy with her lyrics, “If U Seek Amy” being just the most recent instance. As the old saying goes, “If it ain’t broke, why fix it” – and both Spears and her management know that the current recipe can sell millions of copies, and neither is willing to change it just now that she’s coming out with a new album. In this sense, perfectly produced and capturing all that made Spears the bubble-gum pop princess, “3” is a certain winner, critics say. Moreover, fans seem to love it.

“The song is slick, but it’s cold, and therefore in line with Spears’ recent trek around the globe. Her Circus comeback tour was an elaborate stage get-up, one to prove that the franchise is alive and well, if alive and well is judged solely by dollar signs. It’s less a single than a distraction, a perfectly capable club song that stands as a marketing device, one designed to help sell Spears’ upcoming hits set, ‘The Singles Collection’ (Nov. 24). It’s been only five years and two albums since Jive last released a Spears hits package, and ‘3’ exists solely as a way to resell material fans probably already own, comfortably standing alongside her recent hits.” the aforementioned publication adds.

To hear Britney Spears’ first single, “3,” in its entirety, please see here.