Attack! Attack! - 'You and Me'
Post categories: Reviews
| 17:02 UK time, Monday, 23 February 2009
Making a good pop song is a bit like making a good cake: you can have all the right ingredients, but it can still go very, very wrong (and I should know: once I made the world's most amazing cake, but ruined it at the last minute by deciding to hide a pea in it for people to find. The pea melted and my friends never found it, but did comment on the cake's "earthy taste").
With new single 'You and Me', Attack! Attack! have exactly this problem. No, not the bit about the pea (I'm not sure how you'd hide a pea in a song), but that despite the fact they've got all the right bits and pieces to be the sort of cheesy emo-pop I LOVE, their new single just doesn't work for me.
(watch the vid )
Okay, so the good stuff. For starters, the intro has got the jerky guitars and discothèque drums that I'm a little bit addicted to at the moment. TICK.
Then you've got a great, accessible melody line throughout which makes me want to (and attempt to) sing along, even though a) I have no idea what the lyrics are yet and (b) I am in a public place where people are very likely to get offended by said attempt. TICK TICK.
Throw in the fact that the band is made up of members from old groups that I used to quite like (Dopamine and Midasuno), PLUS the little opportunity for a bit of a handclap midway through the song, and you've got five million ticks and, on paper, a recipe for a brilliant song.
But (there's always a "but") whilst in theory, this should be a great record, in reality; it is so by the (cookery) book that it is basically vair, vair boring.
'You and Me' could easily have been written by one of any number of bands that already exist (Boys Like Girls, Kids in Glass Houses, FOB etc), but if it was, it would probably sound a lot better. The song is pretty uninventive (right down to the fact the band name already belongs to another one... including the exclamation mark (see !)), and whilst it's fun and gets the toe tapping (or shoulders wiggling if you're as cool as me), it's very forgettable.
Vocally it's not even that distinctive (Fall Out Boy, anyone?), something that could be easily forgiven if it didn't all sound so, well... forced.
Indeed, that's precisely the problem with the whole thing; it's all just a little bit try hard and polished - something that's unexpected, seeing as the opening seems to suggest the song is going to be all quirky and raw.
And I want to like the song, I do, I really do, especially as technically it should be right up my street, but 'You and Me' lacks any real imagination. I've heard it all before and I'm bored. I guess in this case, the end result is just a little too half-baked for my liking.
Now, with all this talk of food, I'm off to bake a cake... one without peas this time.
Download: Out now
CD Released: February 23rd
(Vicki Lutas)
PS Props where props are due though, the dog in the video is soooo cute.
PPS. I don't think i've ever used the phrase 'props' before. I'm not sure how I feel about the fact I just did.
Comment number 1.
At 23rd Feb 2009, Alice_the_goldfish_ wrote:*writes notes*
DON'T put peas in cakes.
I didn't know peas could melt.
It's an okay song, but a bit too meh and, like you said, by the book(and I like my same-y emo music).
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Comment number 2.
At 24th Feb 2009, Vicki wrote:I know, I didn't know they could melt either! It was quite a shock for everyone involved.
I think in future, the best plan is to put a FROZEN pea in after you've baked a cake, rather than bake the cake with the pea already in it. Although as you've just noted, it's probably better to keep well clear of peas in cakes full stop...
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Comment number 3.
At 24th Feb 2009, XxlivsxX wrote:I'm finding your reviews ery enjoyable Vicki Lutas. Good work :)
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Comment number 4.
At 25th Feb 2009, igorah wrote:Wow, this sounds sososo much like Kids In Glass Houses
(But not as good :] )
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Comment number 5.
At 25th Feb 2009, Vicki wrote:Aw, thanks Livs! Your comment has LITERALLY made my day :) And yeah, totally agree Igorah. And I really expected to love this song! xx
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