The Feeling - 'I Thought It Was Over'
It's a shame so many pop stars choose to marry outside the industry when inter-pop marriages give us such an interesting cross-pollination of sounds, not to mention a possibility for part-time supergroups. It certainly seems to have worked well that Richard Jones from The Feeling married Sophie Ellis-Bextor, since he and bandmate Dan Gillespie Sells collaborated on my personal favourite song from her current album ('Love Is Here', if anyone's taking notes).
And now on the other side of the coin, the Feeling's new single maintains their trademark whimsical pop strummery while incorporating a hint of Sophie's particular brand of disco. Seriously, it's a brilliant side-effect, and it's making us wonder who else we can marry off in the world of pop to develop such intriguing new sounds. Maybe Nicola from Girls Aloud can marry Mark Ronson? Or Rihanna can marry Mika? Okay, so it's a work-in-progress...
Anyway, putting band members and their spouses to one side for a minute, does this musical melting pot create a delectable chocolate fondue, or merely a vat of slightly curdling cheese? I'd personally come down on the side of the former; it takes a bit of adjusting to because the sound has clearly moved on from their last album, but it's moved on in a way that makes sense for the band.
There was always a quaintness to their material, a sense that they cared less about currency and coolness than about the manufacturing of a catchy pop tune, and so it fits that their shift into a more electro-fied direction is also slightly out of its own time, sounding like it would be more at home in the early '80s.
Everything else, however, is present and correct: Dan Gillespie Sells' crisp vocals, some insistent guitar riffs, well-judged harmonies, and a hummable chorus. There's also a brilliantly epic middle-eight, which I get the impression is at least partially tongue-in-cheek, and best of all, a brief burst just before the three-and-a-half minute mark where for a few seconds it all sounds like a ZX Spectrum computer game.
It's not as arresting as some of their earlier singles, particularly 'Sewn', but if this is anything to go by, they're not going to be short of material any time soon.
Now: how about Justin Timberlake marries Gwenno from the Pipettes? No? I'll keep working on that one...
Download: Out now
CD Released: February 11th
(Steve Perkins)
Comments
Hey, great review (4 stars!) but you might want to change the links at the bottom, though, for fear of annoying any New Young Puritan fans.
I love this song, I pre ordered it way back at the beginning of January on Amazon, and I cannot wait to get it! Credibility be damned, The Feeling are brilliant.
[Sorry about the links, all fixed now - Fraser]
Very good song and keeping up their success
How ironic that i hate both the feeling and sophie ellis bextor.... even before i knew there was a connection between them. It's something about that accent they sing in...
in 2006 i hated orson and the feeling, in 2008 i hate scouting for girls and the wombats....
Amy Winehouse should marry Pete Docherty and then we'd solve the worlds drug problems as they'd be none left.
Great song and much better then the last offering
"Amy Winehouse should marry Pete Docherty and then we'd solve the worlds drug problems as they'd be none left."
I think Robbie Williams might disagree with you there.
[Excellent work! Anyone else we can libel while we're at it? - Fraser]
Steve,
Gwenno from the Pipettes is already entangled with a rather wonderfully talented musician, James Chant. This already creates quite a sonic fusion on her solo material as-is.
I wouldn't wish it to be any different...
[Yeah STEVE, what were you THINKING?? - Fraser]
Steve, you left out another "inter-pop marriage", one which has to do with this very band.... the drummer Paul Stewart is engaged to Sinead Quinn (remember her from Fame Academy?). They'll probably be married any day now :)
Anyway, a fresh-sounding song from a good band, I like it very much... oh and a great review too, 4 stars is a great rating :)