Gillingham, Kent, UK (By Mikey) - Each week I preview an album which I think deserves a listen to and if it's worth to buy, I will cater for all tastes of music from R'n'B to Rock, Hip hop and Pop. At the end of the page, you will find all future album releases.
Girls Aloud - Sound of the Underground
Release Date: May 26, 2003
With their release of the new single on Monday of Life Got Cold. In the World of manufactured pop comes a hot 5-piece sassy girl band they are- Sarah Harding, Nadine Coyle, Cheryl Tweedy, Nicola and Kimberley Walsh - are Girls Aloud. The eventual winners of the ITV's Pop Reality show Popstars: The Rivals. The band has had a massive debut entry in the Top 40 last year with the catchy, rocky Sound of the Underground, reaching No.1, beating the boys - One True Voice - into second place for the race to the Christmas No.1 position, with projected sales of over 213,00 million.
Their debut album just speaks for itself, with bouncy, pop rocky songs, with the odd ballad thrown in the mix of it. The album kicks off with the incredible debut single Sound Of The Underground and the equally fantastic No Good Advice, but instead of deteriorating from then on, it actually improves.
A stand out track is Some Kind Of Miracle. Although it's not as edgy as the girls' first two releases, it's definitely a potential single, and has a certain funk about it. The best track on the album, however, comes in the form of Life Got Cold. It cleverly crosses the line between being a ballad and a sexy, seductive number. Definitely another No. 1 here, it reminds me of some of All Saints' early stuff.
Another track that needs a mention is Stop. It sounds almost like something out of the 60s, but it fits right in. Nadine takes lead vocals yet again, and it suits her voice perfectly. Then we have the much-hyped song Girls Allowed, written by Westlife's Bryan McFadden. It's great, and has a real sass about it, while sounding very retro and early Spice Girls-ish. A perfect choice for a single, it gives the girls a chance to chant about their independence.
Forever & A Night is one of the very few ballads on the album. It's very reminiscent of the Spice Girls' 2 Become 1 and could easily be this year's Christmas No. 1. Towards the end of the album, you'd expect it to get weaker, with a few extra tracks thrown in for padding. However, the songs continue to go from strength to strength. One of these stand outs is the Samantha Mumba sounding Don't Want You Back. This track is pure class, and will no doubt become popular with many ladies after the breakdown of a relationship. Straight after that is White Lies, which deserves to be a single! It's extremely dark, urban and sexy, and lets Girls Aloud really get down! Words cannot describe how wicked this track is.
The songs I haven't mentioned are all great as well, but they can be pretty much described as album tracks. Unlike most albums though, there are potentially eight singles here, with the obvious standouts being Some Kind Of Miracle, White Lies, Girls Allowed and Life Got Cold. The faults on this album are minimal. The only negative thing I can say is that the surf guitar doesn't make as much of an appearance as I had hoped, but there's still a major 80s retro-funk thing going on in every song! Will the girls last the pace of this pop madness, as manufactured acts are killing the single market, well if they keep on producing good songs they will, otherwise its back to cleaning tables at the cafes.
7/10
Tracklisting
1 Sound of the Underground
2 No Good Advice
3 Some Kind of Miracle
4 All I Need (All I Don't)
5 Life Got Cold
6 Mars attack
7 Stop
8 Girls Allowed
9 Forever and a Night
10 Love/Hate
11 Boogie Down Love
12 Don't Want You Back
13 White Lies
14 Love Bomb (Bonus Track)
15 Everything You Ever Wanted (Bonus Track)
NEXT REVIEW: Evanescence 'Fallen'
Future Album Releases
August 25
Paul Weller - Fly On The Wall
Richard X - Presents His X Factor Volume One
Mary J Blige - Love & Life
Michael Crawford - Anthology
Rancid - Indestructable
The Raveonettes - Chain Gang Of Love
Wheatus - Hand Over Your Loved Ones
September 1
Abs - Abstract Theory
Kelly Clarkson - Thankful
Sash! - S4 Sash
September 8
David Bowie - Reality
Iron Maiden - Dance With Death
Elvis Presley - Second To None: The Greatest Hits
Spiritualized - Amazing Grace
Wheatus - Hand Over Your Loved Ones
September 15
Chicane - Easy To Assemble
Gloria Estefan - Unwrapped
Lemonescent - Unconditional Love
Beth Orton - Pass In Time: The Anthology
Seal - Seal IV
Starsailor - Silence Is Easy
September 22
Gareth Gates - TBA
Muse - Absolution
Nickelback - The Long Road
So Solid Crew - Second Verse
Sting - Sacred Love
Travis - Twelve Memories
September 29
Dido - Life For Rent
Lisa Scott-Lee - Unleashed
Lene Marlin - Another Day
Rachel Stevens - Funky Dory
Texas - Careful What You Wish For
October 6
Blondie - The Curse Of Blondie
Siobhan Donaghy - Revolution In Me
Soft Cell - Soft Cell Live
October 13
Stacie Orrico - Stacie Orrico
Suede - Singles
October 27
REM - In Time: Greatest Hits
