Friday, February 17th

Girls Aloud

music: Biology by Girls Aloud
mood: Sexy & Sassy

If you haven't heard the UK girl group Girls Aloud, I highly recommend their three import CDs.

Girls Aloud are a manufactured girl group chosen through a UK American Idol-style TV show that whittled down their hundreds of male and female contestants into a five man boy group and a five woman girl group. I’ve heard that the boy group is not so hot. But the girl group? Wow! Girls Aloud is terrific! Their music is extremely well-produced and superbly written pop, sort of a cross between Abba and Madonna with a little bit of Marco's Adam & the Ants twangy guitar thrown in for good measure on some songs.

Girls Aloud has got magnificent sweeping pop anthems (“I’ll Stand By You”), irresistable dance numbers and lots of sassy, sexy attitude. The one song of theirs you might have heard was their pumping cover of the Pointer Sisters "Jump" for the film "Love Actually".

They've had a rack of #1s in the UK but I don't think any of their CDs have been released here in the U.S.

Give "Biology" (from their CD "Chemistry") a listen. It starts out with a sample of the driving Alan Price piano opening of The Animals song "Club A-Go-Go" and then begins layering on more hooks than a tackle box. Infectious, catchy pop at its best.

All three of their CDs are excellent. If you pick up “Chemistry”, look for the double disc version. The second CD is Christmas songs. It includes a slick cover version of Roy Wood’s “I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday”.