More mature, less ear-grabbing
A slightly riper offering from the princess of Teenybop punk-pop and the designer DIY image. The girl still sports the look of a punk-chick with a hundred-dollar hairdo, but this new single displays a greater level of maturity in style of sound and lyrical content. For the majority of fans, who fall into the age bracket of 10-16, this could be a turn for the worse.
The song isn’t striking, the conglomerate of chords slightly monotonous in the background, it doesn’t grab you by the ears but, on forced listen, there is a dexterity to this new record that the previous singles lack. The question is will the sweet subtleties of the new tune subliminally stimulate the audio-senses or is the track a little too non-dynamic and 2D?
Although still very formulaic, the guitars sound more smooth and clean, the addition of strings gives it a more adult edge and vocals certainly have mature-pop feel about them, Dido-esque and, at times, their strength nearly worthy of competing with Leigh Nash’s (Sixpence None The Richer) beautiful voice.
However, these qualities cannot disguise the fact it’s not as memorable as ‘Complicated,’ nor as annoyingly catchy as the ridiculously titled ‘Sk8r Boi.’ Guaranteed radio-play, but most likely only to serve the purpose of a non-attention-requiring, mid-afternoon, wash-over track, a shame really as a more dynamic approach to the feel of the song could have made it so much better. Full appreciation requires a bit too much effort and a few too many multiple listens. Simply could have been better…