"Love Machine" | ||||
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Single by Girls Aloud | ||||
from the album What Will the Neighbours Say? | ||||
B-side | "Androgynous Girls" | |||
Released | 13 September 2004 | |||
Recorded | 2004 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:27 | |||
Label | Polydor | |||
Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) |
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Girls Aloud singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Love Machine" on YouTube |
"Love Machine" is a song recorded by British girl group Girls Aloud from their second studio album, What Will the Neighbours Say? (2004). It was released by Polydor Records on 13 September 2004, as the second single from the album. The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, Tim Powell, Nick Coler, Lisa Cowling, Myra Boyle, and Shawn Lee. The instrumentation was inspired by The Smiths, and created by Powell and Coler. "Love Machine" is an uptempo pop rock song with elements of 1980s synthpop. The single was received favourably by contemporary music critics, who deemed it a joyful track that was different from the single releases by other artists at the time. According to research carried out for Nokia in 2006, "Love Machine" is the second "most exhilarating" song ever.
"Love Machine" debuted and peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart, continuing the band's string of hits by becoming their sixth consecutive single to chart within the top three. The song also peaked inside the top ten in Europe and Ireland. The accompanying music video was directed by Stuart Gosling, and portrays the five members in a nightclub/restaurant scene dancing and sipping champagne whilst singing their song. Girls Aloud performed "Love Machine" on all of their tours and on several live appearances, including at Disney Channel Kids Awards, TMF Awards 2005, and at The Girls Aloud Party TV special in 2008.
Following a brief hiatus, Polydor Records enlisted Brian Higgins and Xenomania to produce Girls Aloud's second album in its entirety, following the success of their debut album Sound of the Underground. [3] Higgins explained that Polydor were not going to continue with the group's contract unless he produced songs for the album. [4] He continued, saying that his initial reaction was that he thought he would only be required to produce a couple of songs, however Polydor insisted that he produce the album in its entirety and that they thought only he understood what they wanted. [4] The album was recorded from April to September 2004, although its lead single "The Show" was released in June 2004. [5] Bandmate Nicola Roberts said that "Love Machine" was recorded in 18 parts over three days. [6] Roberts also revealed that the band initially was in disagreement with Polydor regarding its release as a single, with Sarah Harding adding that all the girls wanted to release "Deadlines & Diets" instead. [6] Kimberley Walsh and Nadine Coyle in particular voiced their disapproval of the single release, Coyle stating it would be "career suicide" and that she thought the group would be known as laughing stocks if the song came out. [7]
However, despite an "embarrassing" meeting between the label and the girls, "Love Machine" was picked as the second single from What Will the Neighbours Say? , being released on 13 September 2004. [5] "The pressure to come up with singles was, as always, immense. But [...] we were able to have a lot of fun working on ideas that were maybe a little too odd to be on the radio," Higgins said. [3] It was released on three different CD single formats, as well as an additional 7" picture disc, making it Girls Aloud's first single available on vinyl. [5] The first disc included a Flip & Fill remix of "The Show". [8] For the sleeve of the second CD, Artwork design group Form invented five fake magazines, one for each member, and used "Love Machine" lyrics as the headlines. [5] The disc included an exclusive previously unreleased b-side entitled "Androgynous Girls", [9] which had been initially considered to be released as the lead single of the album. [10] The Gravitas Disco Mix of "Love Machine" was also included. The maxi-CD also included a task-based game, created by design agency Holler. [11] The 7" picture disc included the radio edit and Tony Lamezma Remix of "Love Machine". [12]
Cheryl Cole later stated that despite her initially hating the song, that the success of the single taught the group that they were not always right regarding single decisions and that they needed to listen to their label from time to time.[ citation needed ]
"Love Machine" was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, Tim Powell, Nick Coler, Lisa Cowling, Myra Boyle, Shawn Lee. They came up with some of the song's lyrics by singing "nonsense lyrics" over a backing track, which eventually evolved into real songwords. [5] The instrumentation track was inspired by The Smiths, and created by Powell and Coler. [5] It is written in G Major with a time signature in common time and a tempo of 121 beats per minute. [13] The vocal range from the band members spans from F3 to B4. [13] An early demo of "Love Machine" was included on the compilation album Popjustice: 100% Solid Pop Music , and later on an official Girls Aloud singles boxset; this version was sung by Cole, Nadine Coyle and Sarah Harding only, and featured radically different lyrics from the released version, even excluding the phrase "Love Machine". [5] One of the song's lyrics, "What will the neighbours say / This time?" inspired the album's title, and it is a reference to Girls Aloud's debut single, where Cole sings, "Neighbour's banging on the bathroom wall / He's saying 'Crank the bass, I gotta get some more'". [14] MusicOMH contributor John Murphy noted the track uses "a guitar line that sounds like it's been nicked from an old rockabilly tune", and compared its composition to other "'80s synth pop songs." [15]
The track received generally favourable reviews from music critics. Alexis Petridis of The Guardian considered "The Show" and "Love Machine" as the "perfect examples of Xenomania's uniquely rousing approach to pop," adding that the latter "sounds, incredibly, like the Smiths' Rusholme Ruffians colliding head-on with that band's musical nemesis, chirpy 1980s synth-pop." [16] A reviewer for Virgin Media stated the song's "bouncy drums, perky guitars and ditsy lyrics will probably cause a seizure," and commented further, saying that "it sounds so unlike anything else in the charts right now...proving once again that they're still one of the most exciting bands in pop right now." [17] The song was a Track Pick from the Allmusic review of What Will the Neighbours Say? by Sharon Mawer, [14] while Robert Copsey of Digital Spy stated that, despite having many previous releases, it wasn't until "Love Machine", "a swinging, big band track with ludicrous lyrics – that they were thrust into the wider public consciousness." [18] A BBC Music critic, however, called it "upbeat but not particularly tuneful". [19] According to research carried out for Nokia in 2006, "Love Machine" is the second "most exhilarating" song ever, after "Song 2" by Blur. [20] [21]
Billboard named the song #65 on their list of 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time. [22]
On the week ending 2 October 2004, "Love Machine" debuted at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart, being held of the top spot by "Call on Me" by Eric Prydz. [23] It stayed at the same position the following week, before falling to number 8. [24] The song also reached number six on the UK Downloads Chart, [25] and eventually became the band's 7th best-selling single in the UK. [26] "Love Machine" also debuted and peaked at number 8 on the European Hot 100 Singles, staying on the top ten for two weeks. [27] In Ireland, the song debuted at number nine on 16 September 2004, and remained at the same position for three weeks, becoming Girls Aloud's first single to fail to enter the top five. [28] [29] [30] It spent one last week in the top ten at number ten. [31] "Love Machine" also entered the Dutch chart Single Top 100 on 14 May 2005 at number 52, before falling of the chart after 4 weeks. [32]
The accompanying music video for "Love Machine" was directed by Stuart Gosling for Image Dynamic Pictures, and filmed at the Titanic restaurant on London's Brewer Street. [33] Gosling shot the project on 35mm film to give it the desired sleek, stylised, polished and glossy look. Girls Aloud members stopped in at Camden Post to view the footage and were impressed with the final results. [33] The video depicts a nightclub/restaurant scene with the five women dancing and sipping champagne at the location whilst singing their pop number. [33] A caption at the start of the video identifies the location as "The Eskimo Club", which explains the otherwise meaningless song lyrics "Let's go eskimo".
"Love Machine" was promoted through several live performances, including at the Disney Channel Kids Awards on 16 September 2004, [34] and at the Smash Hits Poll Winners Party in 2004. [35] They also performed it at the Carling Academy London on 10 February 2005, [36] and at the TMF Awards 2005 in Belgium. [37] The same year, Girls Aloud went on their debut tour, the What Will the Neighbours Say...? Tour, where they performed "Love Machine" in schoolgirl uniforms. [38] [ unreliable source? ] For 2006's Chemistry Tour, there was an interlude where the group danced to "1 Thing" by Amerie. [39] There was a similar interlude during 2007's The Greatest Hits Tour, where a big band breakdown was included. [40] Also in 2007, the song was performed at the T4 on the Beach special.[ citation needed ] "Love Machine" was performed on 2008's Tangled Up Tour, where the band members wore cabaret inspired costumes. [41] Later that year, the band performed it at The Girls Aloud Party TV special held by ITV1,[ citation needed ] and at the V Festival. [42] For 2009's Out of Control Tour, the song was given a brassier, retro arrangement and included a dance break. [43] On 14 December 2012, the band appeared on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge, performing the song to promote their greatest hits album Ten , [44] and also at The Graham Norton Show the same day. [45] To further promote the greatest hits, "Love Machine" was also included on a promotional megamix. [46] In 2013, the song was performed during the Ten: The Hits Tour. [47] English indie rock band Arctic Monkeys covered the song on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge. [44]
These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of "Love Machine".
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Weekly charts
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Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United Kingdom (BPI) [54] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Girls Aloud are a British-Irish pop girl group that was created through the ITV talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. The line up consisted of members Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. In 2012, the group was named as Britain's biggest selling girl group of the 21st century so far, with over 4.3 million singles sales and 4 million albums sold in the UK. The group achieved a string of twenty top-ten singles on the UK singles chart, including four number ones. They also achieved seven BPI certified albums, two of which debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart. They have been nominated for five Brit Awards and won one of them, Best Single in 2009 for "The Promise".
What Will the Neighbours Say? is the second studio album by English-Irish all-female pop group Girls Aloud. It was released in the United Kingdom on 29 November 2004 by Polydor Records. Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania were enlisted to produce the entire album, allowing for more inventive ideas. What Will the Neighbours Say? explores various subgenres of pop music.
Sound of the Underground is the debut studio album by English-Irish girl group Girls Aloud, formed through the ITV television series Popstars: The Rivals. It was released in Ireland on 23 May 2003, in the United Kingdom and Europe on 26 May 2003, and reissued on 17 November 2003 through Polydor. Girls Aloud worked with a variety of musicians and producers on Sound of the Underground, which was largely inspired by 1980s music. Comparisons were made with artists such as Bananarama, The Bangles, Blondie and Spice Girls.
Chemistry is the third studio album by English-Irish girl group Girls Aloud. It was released in the United Kingdom on 5 December 2005 by Polydor Records. After the success of What Will the Neighbours Say?, the album was again entirely produced by Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania. Chemistry is a loose concept album which details celebrity lifestyle and "what it's like to be a twentysomething girl in London." A number of the songs avert the verse-chorus form typical of pop music.
"Sound of the Underground" is a song that was the debut single of British-Irish pop group Girls Aloud, and later featured on their debut album of the same title. The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and Niara Scarlett, and produced by Higgins and his production team Xenomania. Following Girls Aloud's formation on the ITV1 reality television show Popstars: The Rivals, "Sound of the Underground" was released 16 days later, on 16 December 2002. Commercially, it was an immediate success; it became the year's Christmas number one in the UK, spending four consecutive weeks atop the chart. It also reached number one in Ireland and peaked within the top forty in Australia, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland.
"No Good Advice" is a song by British-Irish girl group Girls Aloud, taken from their debut album, Sound of the Underground (2003). The song was written by Aqua's Lene Nystrøm Rasted, Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. The song has themes of rebellion, reflecting Higgins' general mood of failure after a business partnership fell through.
"Life Got Cold" is a song by British girl group Girls Aloud, taken from their debut album Sound of the Underground (2003). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Noel Gallagher of Oasis received a writing credit due to similarities with Oasis' "Wonderwall".
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"The Show" is a song recorded by British girl group Girls Aloud for their second studio album, What Will the Neighbours Say? (2004). It was released by Polydor Records on 28 June 2004, as the lead single from the album. The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, Lisa Cowling, Jon Shave, and Tim Powell. The synth rhythm, composed by Shave, represents a change in musical direction from the band's previous releases. "The Show" is an uptempo dance-pop, electropop and Eurodance song with elements of the 1990 rave records.
"Wake Me Up" is a song recorded by British girl group Girls Aloud from their second studio album, What Will the Neighbours Say? (2004). It was released by Polydor Records on 21 February 2005, as the fourth and final single from the album. The song had been initially considered as the lead single, however, it was deemed to sound too harsh and the record company did not want to take the risk. The track was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, Tim Powell, Shawn Lee, Lisa Cowling, Paul Woods and Yusra Maru'e. "Wake Me Up" is a pop rock song composed of a "garage rock guitar riff". It received mixed reviews from music critics. While some described it as predictable, others wrote that it appeared to be an attempt to recapture the sound of some of their previous release. Alex Kapranos, the lead singer of indie rock band Franz Ferdinand, said "Wake Me Up" inspired the band to work with producer Brian Higgins.
"Long Hot Summer" is a song by English-Irish all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken as the first single from their third studio album Chemistry (2005). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. "Long Hot Summer" was written for inclusion in the Disney film Herbie: Fully Loaded (2005), but plans fell through. Higgins later described the track as "a disaster record." Released in August 2005, it became Girls Aloud's first single to miss the top five on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number seven.
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love machine.