Post by ukswings on Mar 9, 2010 1:16:03 GMT 1
Sugababes - Sweet 7
Here's a primer for those of you who haven't followed the travails and trials of the incredibly successful and influential Queens of the Modern British Girl Group.
The Sugababes got their start in the late 1990s. At that time, the group consisted of Siobhan Donaghy, Mutya Buena, and Keisha Buchanan. Siobhan soon left, and the group was joined by Heidi Range. By 2002, they were racking up hits, and doing very well. In 2005, Mutya left, and the group adopted Amelle Berrabah. Success was still within their reach, with several huge hits. Finally, in 2009, Keisha Buchanan left, and was replaced by Eurovision song contestant Jade Ewen.
Okay, got that? That means that the current Sugababes contain not one original member. Yet they've gone on. Success, though, seems to be enticingly out of reach for the current incarnation.
"Sweet 7" was originally mostly recorded with Buchanan, but the new line-up chose to eliminate all trace of her by re-recording the album with Jade taking the place of all Buchanan's vocals. In the midst of all this shuffling and redoing, though, the one thing that made the Sugababes pretty good was lost. That was cutting edge tunes. What we have here is the first Sugababes release that's just . . . bland. Blah.
The tunes are so precise at this point that it's almost as if they were focus-grouped. There's not a lot of excitement, though, and there's virtually no innovation. This album could have been made in 2004.
Three of the songs have been released as singles; one of those was re-recorded for this current release. "Get Sexy" bounces along, but is just that tiny bit weaker than the Buchanan original.
And the song launches the tone of the album, which is basically to throw screeching Euro synths, auto-tune, and other occasional effects at the girls and have them ululate around it all. Nearly every song on the album follows this pattern, but some are more successful than others. "About a Girl" is groovy, with it's "Ho-ho-hady-oh-oh-ha-day-o" backing and upbeat rhythm. "She's a Mess" is fun, with basically the same set-up, except they say "What's up what's up what's up".
Other tunes don't work as well. "Thank You For the Heartbreak" sounds like bargain basement Beyonce. Even Sean Kingston doesn't liven up the cliches of "Miss Everything". "Wait For You" should receive an award for "Most Soulless Pop Song of the Year".
The best comparison I can make is - remember All Saints? How they had some brilliant songs and great hits, but by the end were slowly fading with stupid tunes like "All Hooked Up"?
Yeah, like that. That's the Sugababes Mark 2010.
In the making of this album, nary a drop of blood was shed. There was also probably very little sweating, but I do get the feeling there may have been a fair smattering of tears. There's nothing to see here, from the fake R&B sexiness of "Give It To Me Now" to the "Halo" buggering of "Crash and Burn".
Move on.
The Sugababes get a 5 for this album on the England Swings scale of 1-10, and that's being generous.
Here's a primer for those of you who haven't followed the travails and trials of the incredibly successful and influential Queens of the Modern British Girl Group.
The Sugababes got their start in the late 1990s. At that time, the group consisted of Siobhan Donaghy, Mutya Buena, and Keisha Buchanan. Siobhan soon left, and the group was joined by Heidi Range. By 2002, they were racking up hits, and doing very well. In 2005, Mutya left, and the group adopted Amelle Berrabah. Success was still within their reach, with several huge hits. Finally, in 2009, Keisha Buchanan left, and was replaced by Eurovision song contestant Jade Ewen.
Okay, got that? That means that the current Sugababes contain not one original member. Yet they've gone on. Success, though, seems to be enticingly out of reach for the current incarnation.
"Sweet 7" was originally mostly recorded with Buchanan, but the new line-up chose to eliminate all trace of her by re-recording the album with Jade taking the place of all Buchanan's vocals. In the midst of all this shuffling and redoing, though, the one thing that made the Sugababes pretty good was lost. That was cutting edge tunes. What we have here is the first Sugababes release that's just . . . bland. Blah.
The tunes are so precise at this point that it's almost as if they were focus-grouped. There's not a lot of excitement, though, and there's virtually no innovation. This album could have been made in 2004.
Three of the songs have been released as singles; one of those was re-recorded for this current release. "Get Sexy" bounces along, but is just that tiny bit weaker than the Buchanan original.
And the song launches the tone of the album, which is basically to throw screeching Euro synths, auto-tune, and other occasional effects at the girls and have them ululate around it all. Nearly every song on the album follows this pattern, but some are more successful than others. "About a Girl" is groovy, with it's "Ho-ho-hady-oh-oh-ha-day-o" backing and upbeat rhythm. "She's a Mess" is fun, with basically the same set-up, except they say "What's up what's up what's up".
Other tunes don't work as well. "Thank You For the Heartbreak" sounds like bargain basement Beyonce. Even Sean Kingston doesn't liven up the cliches of "Miss Everything". "Wait For You" should receive an award for "Most Soulless Pop Song of the Year".
The best comparison I can make is - remember All Saints? How they had some brilliant songs and great hits, but by the end were slowly fading with stupid tunes like "All Hooked Up"?
Yeah, like that. That's the Sugababes Mark 2010.
In the making of this album, nary a drop of blood was shed. There was also probably very little sweating, but I do get the feeling there may have been a fair smattering of tears. There's nothing to see here, from the fake R&B sexiness of "Give It To Me Now" to the "Halo" buggering of "Crash and Burn".
Move on.
The Sugababes get a 5 for this album on the England Swings scale of 1-10, and that's being generous.
