hoarpop: a new mope

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Astonishingly the Pussycat Dolls spinoff reality project that made Danity Kane's record sales look like Destiny's Child, Girlicious have released a second album. They've shed a member but well, they are still there. Extraordinary.

The first album was incredibly amazing once you got past the fact that both of the singles had videos directed by the creative minds behind that Tampax Pearl advert featuring Mother Nature and some of the tender feather-light layering that they needed to sustain their (basically fairly weak) voices was mindblowing. Somewhere in between, presumably related to the poor sales and deaprture of whateverhernamewas, they've become incredibly depressed and introspective, making 'Rebuilt' a collection of restless, distracted dancefloors and relationship breakdowns that switch around every few lines, attention-deficient and unhappily hedonistic. There's a bit in opening sad club song Face The Light that goes I'm bored, I'm bored but I'm not that sets the scene fairly well, tugging in all different directions and fed up but not leaving. The hairography and blunt metaphor of single Maniac (surprisingly expensive video alert; although I don't believe those Justin Timberlake clones are qualified psychiatric nurses and the rather unfortunate choreography decisions make them seem more like rapists; uncomfortable) is anomalous just for being relatively upbeat, although equally flipping good.

The album's only got ten tracks and there isn't a bad one on there (bar about 20 seconds of 'Grinding' where it all goes very NSFW, which is disappointing given the rest of the song is a quality dance-instructions-at-the-depression-disco, err, epic) and right at the end there is this stonker-

Which is a bit Umbrella-stripped-down-completely and a little bit, uhm, Bloc Party right at the beginning (it has a slight syncopation that sounds very like the start of Banquet to probably no one but me) and then just sounds like confusion, from the hate/love/hate/hate/hate/love in the chorus to the rapid poppiness of the verses in contrast to the lyrics. I can't really seem to find out who wrote it -something said Josh Ramsay, if so, I have no idea who he is and it's produced by Swivel who again, I have no idea about; admitedly this is true of about 80% of popular music for the last 18 months but err, cor. Quite something, that.

Comments

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

Maniac is pretty good (tho I see what you mean re: dodgy video, yikes), I wonder what Blackout-era Britney would have done with it (for surely the writers had her in mind when penning it)?

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

I did wonder about that; all the melodies are so very her. I assume someone decided it would be innapropriate or something (probably/possibly Britney herself) but it does absolutely scream her. I also wondered how much of the album was offcuts from the album that Disturbia was supposed to go on, before Rated R was made. A lot of it is quite Rihanna-esque.

In fact rather depressingly (for Girlicious) the only track that really sounds built for them is What My Mama Don't Know, (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Rp5tjsHDqI) also one of the weakest songs on there; I'm glad they went with the feathering of Save The World (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f04bZSzD_Io) rather than the brashness of Stupid Shit (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmSnpqBxRHw&feature=related); it turns out they're better at the more subtle elements of mentalism and should leave all the rest to Fergie's mastery.

[nb: I properly like Stupid Shit, for all that]

[hairbrush.livejournal.com]

I'd always sort of dismissed Girlicious as a bit.. used-condom-on-the-bed-of-the-hotel-room-you've-just-checked-into-on-the-dodgy-end.. but "Maniac" is actually quite good.

RELEVANT TO MY INTERESTS :D

[credoimprobus]

I only picked up the first album this year, actually, but I spent several consequent months obsessed with "Baby Doll", so, yes. VERY RELEVANT. Going to have to look this thing up, now I know it exists!

Love the beat in "Maniac". And who have I seen that suit with the three diamond-shaped pieces on before, anyway? (I was thinking maybe Bouncy in The Alligator Picture, but it wasn't quite that one...)

[skyecaptain.livejournal.com]

Real talk alert: This is the album Rihanna wishes she made this year.