DON’T STOP MOVIN’

S Club 7

So now, when S Club 7 tell you there ain’t no party like an S Club party, you’re going to believe them, aren’t you? I’m certainly not going to argue, especially with the male segment of the band who clearly know this for a fact, bless their little cotton socks. Here we have potentially the biggest obstacle between some half-decent band from Basildon and their first ever Number One after two decades of trying. I know where my allegiance lies, but this is where things go a bit awry. I actually quite like this song. This can’t be right. Things are very wrong here. After all, this is quite obviously a manufactured band – this goes against everything I believe in. The sleeve shows them posing a la 1970s Littlewoods Catalogue – also not encouraging. The band namechecks themselves (well, they refer to an S Club Beat, who else could lay claim to that?) – possibly the most unnecessary thing to do ever, seeing as your fans know full well who you are (eh, Craig David?). Finally, most shockingly of all, a vocoder is employed in places. This Is Unnaceptable. Despite all these drawbacks however, the song works. It could be because although Bradley isn’t the greatest singer ever, he sticks to his guns and gives it his best shot but I think it’s possibly because it’s a cheerful tune that knows it shouldn’t overstep the mark (and just what did happen to Aqua?). By rights, I should hate this song and end up taking a kitchen knife to the CD, but I don’t. If it does beat Depeche Mode to No1, then fair play to it, but why one of the lads has adopted the Brian-from-Channel-4’s-Spaced look (very evident in the video) is beyond me.

COWBOYS & KISSES

Anastacia

I dare you not to start singing the Verve’s Lucky Man when this song comes on the radio. There’s not really a lot for me to say here. She warbles, she wails, she belts out the words, but the most impressive thing about her singing style is the way she can apparently fit most of the letters of the alphabet into the smallest words she sings (usually the words at the end of each line, have a listen, you’ll see what I’m getting at). Certainly livens up a bog-standard country/pop song though.