I've really been digging Girls Aloud's Tangled Up album. To refresh your memories, here's the Wikipedia scoop on the Girls:
What Wikipedia neglects to mention is how fabulously poptastic Girls Aloud are. They don't try to be groundbreaking or anything, but that's exactly why they're great: they (and mostly their producers) create absolutely solid, good old fashioned pop.
I've been a fan for a relatively short while but it doesn't take very long to hear how fun and well-crafted their tunes are. And in Tangled Up, you can hear how their sound has matured over the years. It's not a drastic change, but there's a real sense that the Girls have embraced some new sounds since their last studio album, 2005's excellent Chemistry (which I must say is my favorite Girls Aloud album!).
On my first listen to Tangled Up I wasn't feeling it so much. It all sounded a bit 'same-y'. Listening to it a second time, however, I found myself really liking what I was hearing. There's nothing that quite stands out and screams 'smash single!' like in their previous albums, which sounds like it would be a problem. Not so. They all just work better together as an album than as single releases.
We start off with the sparkly, mid-tempo, vocoder-sprinkled 'Call The Shots', the second single released from Tangled Up. It's a bit trance-y, a bit dance-y, and really quite lovely, especially the 'I've seen life flow by like a river' bit. 'Close To Love' follows with some guitars peeking in between the synth lines and a killer chorus embedding itself into your subconscious. I particularly like the bit at the end where the Girls show some 'tude and order suitors (I think; I'll have to have a look at the lyrics!) to 'back off' and keep their 'hands off'.
I personally love 'Sexy! No No No'. From the vocoded intro to the grinding synths and guitars of the chorus, this song is too cool for school. A beefy synth line winds its way through lyrics demanding 'damn good lovin' and reminding us that 'from top to bottom I'm a woman, sunshine', just in case we hadn't noticed. This was one of my songs of the summer, and it still stands up as a solid track on the album.
From sexy to shipwrecks - only on a Girls Aloud album! 'Girl Overboard' has some neat effects (like that deep crashing sound) and a great beat, topped by a nice break around 2:42 where we just hear a guitar strumming under the Girls' vocals. The first highlight of the album comes next in the form of 'Can't Speak French,' a wonderful little tune with a great bassline and clap-along drumbeat. With some nice guitar work and that fantastic rhythm, 'Can't Speak French' finds the Girls in a low-key but still fabulous mood.
The next song, 'Black Jacks,' had me going 'D'oh!' - this track has an excellent melody, chorus, and instrumentation, but then they go and mess it up with that shouting! 'New York something something, blah blah if you keep it real' - it just sounds silly and detracts from the song, at least to me. But, like I said, it's got everything else going for it, so I just sort of block out the shouts.
'Control Of The Knife', thankfully, has no shouting. There's some neat production and instrumentation here, lots of great sounds, and even some reggae-ish hits and horns. The vocoder, last heard in 'Sexy! No No No', turns up again here.
If the next song, 'Fling,' doesn't become a single at some point I shall be very cross. A fat, dirty bassline and grinding guitars and synths similar to those on 'Sexy! No No No' chug alongside the Girls singing some delicious lyrics about how they just want a 'bit of ding-a-ling'. Classy! This is a fun track and the second highlight of Tangled Up.
'What You Crying For' comes next and is really rather average, but keeps the upbeat groove of the album going. Guitars sound the beginning of 'I'm Falling', a neat drum'n'bass-y track with lyrics dripping with attitude - 'and all the rest can go blow.' Oh my! We near the close of the album with 'Damn,' which kind of reminds me of 'Real Life' (from What Will The Neighbours Say), except not nearly as good. Like 'What You Crying For', it's kind of average, but not exactly bad.
'Crocodile Tears' finds the Girls in a moody moment, supported by strumming guitars, light synths, a mid-tempo beat, and some nice melancholy vocalizing. A nice close to Tangled Up.
Check it out at 7Digital (for those outside of the UK), iTunes, or your fave music shop. Or just scroll down a bit.
Tangled Up (2007)
1. Call The Shots
2. Close To Love
3. Sexy No No No
4. Girl Overboard
5. Can't Speak French
6. Black Jacks
7. Control Of The Knife
8. Fling
9. What You Crying For
10. I'm Falling
11. Damn
12. Crocodile Tears
Enjoy! Cheery bye, Scarlett
Girls Aloud are a British girl group created by ITV1 talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. The group, consisting of Cheryl Cole (n?e Tweedy), Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh, has become one of the most successful British pop groups of the decade, with a record-breaking sixteen consecutive Top 10 singles (including three number ones), four platinum albums (including a number one) and record sales in excess of 4 million in the UK. They are Smash Hits poll winners, have won a TMF Award and have been nominated for a BRIT Award.
What Wikipedia neglects to mention is how fabulously poptastic Girls Aloud are. They don't try to be groundbreaking or anything, but that's exactly why they're great: they (and mostly their producers) create absolutely solid, good old fashioned pop.I've been a fan for a relatively short while but it doesn't take very long to hear how fun and well-crafted their tunes are. And in Tangled Up, you can hear how their sound has matured over the years. It's not a drastic change, but there's a real sense that the Girls have embraced some new sounds since their last studio album, 2005's excellent Chemistry (which I must say is my favorite Girls Aloud album!).
On my first listen to Tangled Up I wasn't feeling it so much. It all sounded a bit 'same-y'. Listening to it a second time, however, I found myself really liking what I was hearing. There's nothing that quite stands out and screams 'smash single!' like in their previous albums, which sounds like it would be a problem. Not so. They all just work better together as an album than as single releases.
We start off with the sparkly, mid-tempo, vocoder-sprinkled 'Call The Shots', the second single released from Tangled Up. It's a bit trance-y, a bit dance-y, and really quite lovely, especially the 'I've seen life flow by like a river' bit. 'Close To Love' follows with some guitars peeking in between the synth lines and a killer chorus embedding itself into your subconscious. I particularly like the bit at the end where the Girls show some 'tude and order suitors (I think; I'll have to have a look at the lyrics!) to 'back off' and keep their 'hands off'.
I personally love 'Sexy! No No No'. From the vocoded intro to the grinding synths and guitars of the chorus, this song is too cool for school. A beefy synth line winds its way through lyrics demanding 'damn good lovin' and reminding us that 'from top to bottom I'm a woman, sunshine', just in case we hadn't noticed. This was one of my songs of the summer, and it still stands up as a solid track on the album.
From sexy to shipwrecks - only on a Girls Aloud album! 'Girl Overboard' has some neat effects (like that deep crashing sound) and a great beat, topped by a nice break around 2:42 where we just hear a guitar strumming under the Girls' vocals. The first highlight of the album comes next in the form of 'Can't Speak French,' a wonderful little tune with a great bassline and clap-along drumbeat. With some nice guitar work and that fantastic rhythm, 'Can't Speak French' finds the Girls in a low-key but still fabulous mood.
The next song, 'Black Jacks,' had me going 'D'oh!' - this track has an excellent melody, chorus, and instrumentation, but then they go and mess it up with that shouting! 'New York something something, blah blah if you keep it real' - it just sounds silly and detracts from the song, at least to me. But, like I said, it's got everything else going for it, so I just sort of block out the shouts.
'Control Of The Knife', thankfully, has no shouting. There's some neat production and instrumentation here, lots of great sounds, and even some reggae-ish hits and horns. The vocoder, last heard in 'Sexy! No No No', turns up again here.
If the next song, 'Fling,' doesn't become a single at some point I shall be very cross. A fat, dirty bassline and grinding guitars and synths similar to those on 'Sexy! No No No' chug alongside the Girls singing some delicious lyrics about how they just want a 'bit of ding-a-ling'. Classy! This is a fun track and the second highlight of Tangled Up.
'What You Crying For' comes next and is really rather average, but keeps the upbeat groove of the album going. Guitars sound the beginning of 'I'm Falling', a neat drum'n'bass-y track with lyrics dripping with attitude - 'and all the rest can go blow.' Oh my! We near the close of the album with 'Damn,' which kind of reminds me of 'Real Life' (from What Will The Neighbours Say), except not nearly as good. Like 'What You Crying For', it's kind of average, but not exactly bad.
'Crocodile Tears' finds the Girls in a moody moment, supported by strumming guitars, light synths, a mid-tempo beat, and some nice melancholy vocalizing. A nice close to Tangled Up.
Check it out at 7Digital (for those outside of the UK), iTunes, or your fave music shop. Or just scroll down a bit.
Tangled Up (2007)
1. Call The Shots2. Close To Love
3. Sexy No No No
4. Girl Overboard
5. Can't Speak French
6. Black Jacks
7. Control Of The Knife
8. Fling
9. What You Crying For
10. I'm Falling
11. Damn
12. Crocodile Tears
Enjoy! Cheery bye, Scarlett
Girls Aloud - Tangled Up (2007)
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