London with the Lights On

Last updated

London with the Lights On
Stooshe - London with the Lights On.png
Studio album by
Released27 May 2013
Recorded2010–13
Genre
Label Warner – UK
Producer
Singles from London with the Lights On
  1. "Love Me"
    Released: 4 March 2012
  2. "Black Heart"
    Released: 15 June 2012
  3. "Slip"
    Released: 12 May 2013
  4. "My Man Music"
    Released: 28 July 2013

London with the Lights On is the debut studio album by English girl group Stooshe. It was originally set for release on 25 June 2012 under the name of Swings and Roundabouts, but was held back twice; under the new self-titled name and was name changed and released on 27 May 2013.

Contents

"Love Me" was released on 4 March 2012 as the album's lead single, peaking at number 5 on the UK Singles Chart. "Black Heart" was released as the second single on 15 June 2012 and became the group's highest-charting single to date, peaking at number 3. The third single from the album was initially intended to be "Waterfalls", a cover of the TLC song, which was released on 11 November 2012; however, Stooshe later revealed that it would not make the cut for the final track list and that they were disowning it. "Slip" was released as the album's third single on 12 May 2013, peaking at number 12.

Background

Stooshe's début album was announced around the time of the release of the first single, "Love Me". It was initially titled Swings and Roundabouts and a release date was set for 25 June 2012. However, Stooshe later announced the album would be self-titled and would be released on 26 November 2012. On 15 November, Robert Copsey from Digital Spy reported that the album's release would be delayed until March 2013. [4] A statement from the group explained "Following a late rush of creativity which has seen them write some of the best songs of their career, Stooshe have decided to delay the release of their début album until March 2013 so they have time to record these songs for inclusion on the album." [4] Stooshe added that they would be going back to the studio soon to record the new songs. [4]

Copsey later confirmed that the album would be released on 27 May 2013. [5] The band revealed that they delayed the release of the album to undo their record label's interference. Anderson stated "It was down to us that our album didn't come out months ago," said Anderson. "It was ready to go, but we was listening to it and realised the label had changed a few mixes, a few structures and even taken off a few songs. We made this album before we got signed so it was important for us to still have control." [6] The band also added that their third single, "Waterfalls", would not appear on the album and that they were disowning it. [6] On 5 April, Sam Hine from Popjustice reported that Stooshe had renamed their album London with the Lights On. [7]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 60/100 [8]
Review scores
SourceRating
4music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [9]
BG News (B-) [10]
Daily Express Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [11]
Digital Spy Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [12]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [13]
The Independent Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [14]
Star full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [15]
Irish Independent Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [16]
musicOMH Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [17]
No RipcordStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [18]
Time Out London Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [19]

Caroline Sullivan from The Guardian gave London with the Lights On four out of five stars and commented "Listening to the album is akin to eavesdropping on a conversation between funny, trash-talking women who happen to sing like a trio of Beyoncés: it's a noisy, highly entertaining 50 minutes." [13] Stephen Unwin, writing for the Daily Express , said "It feels like we've been waiting a long time for this first album and in no way does it disappoint. A little En Vogue here, a lot of Salt-n-Pepa there, it is a witty, confident, exceptional debut." [11] The Independent's Simon Price also received the album well, saying "The south London trio's effortlessly assured debut combines classic 1960s soul, streetparty reggae, upfront electro-pop, cackling Night Bus backchat and shameless sexual innuendo. And there is nothing not to love about it." [14] However, Price's colleague Andy Gill gave the album one star, explaining that London with the Lights On "is pretty thin fare" and that the majority of songs collapse "under the weight of excess sass." [15]

Singles

Track listing

Track listing confirmed by iTunes. [23]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Slip"
  • Jo Perry
  • Mo Brandis
  • Iyiola Babalola
  • Darren Lewis
Future Cut3:45
2."Love Me" (featuring Travie McCoy)
Future Cut3:05
3."Black Heart"
Future Cut3:28
4."Jimmy"
Future Cut3:42
5."My Man Music"
  • Perry
  • Buggs
  • Rumbold
  • Diana Barrand
  • Babalola
  • D. Lewis
Future Cut3:32
6."Kiss Chase"
Future Cut3:18
7."Round 2"
  • Perry
  • Mo Brandis
  • Babalola
  • D. Lewis
Future Cut3:57
8."Hoochi Mumma"
  • Perry
  • Rumbold
  • Barrand
  • Babalola
  • D. Lewis
Future Cut3:39
9."Your Own Kind of Beautiful"Future Cut3:37
10."Put the Kettle On"
  • Jo Perry
  • Mo Brandis
  • David Landers
  • Tom Maine
  • Harry Tarlton
  • Tom, Dick & Harry Productions
  • Future Cut
4:01
11."Perfectly Wrong"
Future Cut3:42
12."See Me Like This"
Future Cut3:29
13."Fly Again"
  • Perry
  • Brandis
  • Gavin Holligan
  • Perry
  • Brandis
  • Holligan
4:14
14."Turning Me On"
  • Perry
  • Brandis
  • Thom Bell
  • Obi Ebele
  • Ben Ebele
  • Linda Epstein
Future Cut3:18
Deluxe edition bonus tracks [24]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
15."Ain't No Other Me"Future Cut3:03
16."Inbred City"
  • Perry
  • Babalola
  • D. Lewis
Future Cut3:41
17."Shame"
  • Perry
  • Babalola
  • D. Lewis
Future Cut3:03
18."Whatta Man"
Azor4:28
19."Here Comes the Hotstepper"
Remi3:37
20."Out-takes"Future CutFuture Cut2:39

Charts

Chart (2013)Peak
position
Irish Albums (IRMA) [25] 30
Scottish Albums (OCC) [26] 9
UK Albums (OCC) [27] 8

Release history

RegionDateFormatLabel
United Kingdom27 May 2013 CD, digital download Warner – UK

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