Sound of the Underground | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 23 May 2003 | |||
Recorded | November 2002 – April 2003 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length |
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Label | Polydor | |||
Producer | ||||
Girls Aloud chronology | ||||
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Reissue edition cover | ||||
Singles from Sound of the Underground | ||||
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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.
Sound of the Underground debuted to generally favourable reviews from contemporary music critics,who noted the high quality of the album compared to output from other reality show contestants. The album was certified platinum in the United Kingdom by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). It yielded four singles,including the title track,which topped the UK Singles Chart for a month. The album has sold 368,000 copies in the United Kingdom alone.
The album was re-released on 16 June 2023, [1] in celebration of the album's 20th anniversary,available in vinyl format for the first time.
Girls Aloud were formed through the ITV1 programme Popstars:The Rivals by a public vote on 30 November 2002. [2] Their debut single "Sound of the Underground" was one of sixty songs that Brian Higgins and Miranda Cooper had written with the aim of launching their own girl group. [3] The song was originally recorded in 2001 by London girl group Orchid,who disbanded before gaining a firm record deal. [4] It was produced by Xenomania and chosen by Girls Aloud's manager Louis Walsh as their debut single. [4] "Sound of the Underground" was 2002's Christmas number one single and spent a further three weeks at number one. [5] [6] "Sound of the Underground" and another Xenomania production,Sugababes' "Round Round",have been called "two huge groundbreaking hits", [7] credited with reshaping British pop music for the 2000s. [8]
Following the single's success,Girls Aloud proceeded to begin recording their debut album,which shares its title with the single. As the team grew,their music began to take over the nation. Girls Aloud worked with a variety of mostly British musicians and producers,such as Betty Boo,the Beatmasters,Graham Stack,Steve Anderson and Tim Kellett,and reunited with Higgins and Xenomania. Girls Aloud deliberately waited five months after the release of "Sound of the Underground" in order to ensure they would have a strong second single. [9] Referring to their second single "No Good Advice",Higgins said that Girls Aloud initially did not like the song –"we played them some of it,and they said:'That's not our sound.' I objected to the use of that phrase 'our sound'. I told them they had five minutes to talk about whether or not they wanted to continue with me. They went away and spoke about it and since then it's been fine. They come in expecting to work,and there's a trust there which,I think,dates back to that day." [10]
Sound of the Underground remains Girls Aloud's only studio album not to be entirely written and produced by Higgins and Xenomania,who had initially only created two songs for the album,"Sound of the Underground" and "No Good Advice". When Higgins heard the remaining ten tracks that Girls Aloud had recorded for the album,he promptly called Polydor to complain about the lack of creative content. Higgins said,"They'd sent them off to these other Swedish guys and different people in the UK [...] I said,'There are two completely separate groups on this record. We need to get rid of six tracks and I'll replace them'. We did that and allowed the album to stand up as a body of work." [11] This last-minute decision resulted in Girls Aloud returning to the studio to record a further four tracks with Xenomania –"Some Kind of Miracle","Life Got Cold","Stop" and "Love/Hate". The album was completed in April 2003 and described as a mix of "Blondie and Bananarama,with a smattering of the Spice Girls at their best thrown in." [12]
During the summer of 2003,Girls Aloud would again work with Higgins and Xenomania,recording a further three tracks –a cover version of the Duran Duran hit "Girls on Film",which would become the B-side of "Life Got Cold","You Freak Me Out" for the film Freaky Friday and a cover version of The Pointer Sisters song "Jump" for the film Love Actually . They also re-recorded "Some Kind of Miracle",which was originally intended to be the fourth single from the album before it was scrapped in favour of "Jump". These four tracks,alongside an altered mix of "Life Got Cold",would eventually surface on a reissued version of Sound of the Underground,which was released on 17 November 2003.
Sound of the Underground takes influence from a number of 1980s genres,such as synthpop,power pop,and new wave,and 1990s styles like big beat,drum and bass,and garage. [13] The album received comparisons to girl groups such as Bananarama,The Bangles and Spice Girls. [12] [14] [15] Similarities to Kylie Minogue and Madonna were also noted. [15] [16] A majority of the songs make use of guitars and electronic beats. The rise of indie rock also inspired Brian Higgins to "blur the edges between commercial music and so-called "indie" music." [11] He continued,"pop music was on its backside and indie music was about to rise,through The Strokes and everything else. We were an independent company and we were as indie as the other bands around us. The guitar riff on "No Good Advice" is very very similar to the riff on the track "Michael" by Franz Ferdinand." [11]
It was said that the album's "lyrics [were] curiously insistent upon Girls Aloud's musical credibility and autonomy of thought." [17] Higgins said that "No Good Advice" reflected his general mood of failure after a special deal between Xenomania and London Records fell through in 2000,and about persisting in spite of what people told him to do or not to do. [18] "Life Got Cold" was labelled "surprisingly poignant." [19]
"Sound of the Underground",which opens the album,drew comparisons to Fatboy Slim. [17] [20] It was labelled "an enticing blend of spiky guitars and Fatboy Slim beats topped off with an irresistibly catchy chorus." [20] "Sound of the Underground" was further described as "a mechanistic sashay of twangy surf guitar and sultry gang vocals –Girls Aloud explodes like a five-headed Kylie Minogue." [21] "No Good Advice" was labelled "a disco track with guitar –a cross between Blondie and The Bangles." [14] Unlike many other songs,it was said to be "not obsessed with trying to be a cutting-edge club hit,[...] with at least three different killer hooks welded together" that borrowed heavily from the 1980s. [22] "Some Kind of Miracle",which is "a breezy summer pop song about trying to bag a guy",follows. [16] The Xenomania production had "layered vocals with its slow tempo despite being more formulaic." [22] The song was compared to "a 21st century Bangles",as well as former Spice Girls member and Popstars:The Rivals judge Geri Halliwell. [15] [23]
"All I Need (All I Don't)" was described as "a Kylie-type tune set to squelchy techno",as well as "a disco-funk workout with traces of Cameo and Bedtime Stories vintage Madonna". [15] [16] "Life Got Cold",the album's first ballad and third single,was a late addition to the album,completed by Xenomania shortly before the album's release. [24] The song received attention because of similarities between the guitar riff of "Life Got Cold" and that of the Oasis hit "Wonderwall" (1995). [25] [26] Warner/Chappell Music has since credited Oasis songwriter Noel Gallagher. [27] The song was called a "charming ballad" that was "a sweet but slightly sad pop song". [22] The song begins with a rap. [16] "Mars Attack",produced by Betty Boo and the Beatmasters,"is hip hop-referencing surf punk." [15]
"Stop",a Xenomania production sung entirely by Nadine Coyle apart from the chorus,"starts like the Skids' "Into the Valley" but gets sultry instead of surreal." [15] The album's eighth track,"Girls Allowed",was co-written by Westlife member Brian McFadden. It was described as both "Basement Jaxx meets Spice Girls" and "Donna Summer meets Dannii Minogue". [16] [19] "Forever and a Night" was described as "a soppy love song earmarked as a Christmas single", [16] but slated for sounding like "every girl-group slushy song ever written." [19] "Love/Hate",another song crafted by Xenomania,"lays vocals over garage beats." [16] A second contribution from Betty Boo and the Beatmasters,"Boogie Down Love",follows. It was said that it "mixes the hook of Blondie's "Call Me" with the bells from "Rapture"", [15] as well as being deemed "electro stomping". [28] "Don't Want You Back" was co-written by Anders Bagge,who also wrote Samantha Mumba's "Gotta Tell You",which bears similarities. It was labelled as "love song" in which Girls Aloud are "swooning over bois [sic]". [29] "White Lies" was co-written and produced by Tim Kellett,a former member of The Durutti Column,Simply Red,and Olive.
The original UK edition of the album featured two bonus tracks. "Love Bomb",another Betty Boo collaboration,was compared to Boo's "Where Are You Baby?". [29] "Everything You Ever Wanted" borrows its opening line from The Rolling Stones. [16] In December 2003,the album was re-released with the omission of "Don't Want You Back" and the bonus tracks. Three new songs appeared instead. "Jump",a cover of song "Jump (for My Love)" by The Pointer Sisters,was recorded for the soundtrack to Love Actually (2003). Cheryl Cole noted in Girls Aloud's autobiography Dreams That Glitter –Our Story (2008) that the single "was the point when we realized everything we'd been doing was quite down and moody [...] and that's not what people wanted." "You Freak Me Out" is a pop-rock song that was written and recorded specifically for the Disney film Freaky Friday (2003), [30] Also included was Girls Aloud's cover of "Girls on Film",originally a Duran Duran classic,that originally appeared as a B-side to "Life Got Cold".
Sound of the Underground was released in Ireland on 23 May 2003 and in the United Kingdom and European countries three days later,through Polydor Records and Universal Music Group. The international versions of the album exclude the bonus tracks "Love Bomb" and "Everything You Ever Wanted". A reissue of Sound of the Underground was released on 17 November 2003. It replaced the original bonus tracks and "Don't Want You Back" with three new songs:"Jump","You Freak Me Out",and "Girls on Film". The radio edit of "Life Got Cold" and a remix of "Some Kind of Miracle",also replaced the original versions. Originally,the album would be promoted with a tour with their fellow Popstars:The Rivals contestants;however,the tour was cancelled due to poor ticket sales. Instead,the group promoted the album on their What Will the Neighbours Say...? Tour (2005) along with their second studio album What Will the Neighbours Say? (2004). Sound of the Underground and other Girls Aloud releases were made available for sale on the US iTunes Store on 26 June 2007 through Interscope Records.
On 26 March 2023,it was reported that the remaining members of Girls Aloud are to share unreleased tracks from the archives,to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the album. [31] On 28 April 2023,the band released the promotional single "Sound Of The Underground (Alternative Vocal Mix)",revealed the tracklisting for the forthcoming album reissue,and released a new 4k version of the original music video. The 2023 reissue will be available on vinyl for the very first time. [32]
"Sound of the Underground",Girls Aloud's debut single,was released on 16 December 2002. Competing against the Popstars:The Rivals boyband,One True Voice,they used a combative "Buy girls,bye boys" slogan to persuade the public to buy their single. [33] "Sound of the Underground" received a positive response from most music critics. The music video was shot in a London warehouse just days after Girls Aloud's formation in the last week of competition of Popstars:The Rivals. "Sound of the Underground" debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart and spent four consecutive weeks at number one, [6] earning a platinum certification in March 2003. [34] "No Good Advice" was released five months later in May 2003. In 2003,the song won the Popjustice £20 Music Prize,awarded to the best British pop single of the past year. The video for "No Good Advice" features the members of Girls Aloud clad in metallic,silver,futuristic outfits which can also be seen on the cover of this album. The song debuted at number two. The third single was intended to be "Some Kind of Miracle",but was changed to fan favourite "Life Got Cold". The music video depicts the band members in stunted movement,wandering around an abandoned city setting. The song failed to achieve the success of Girls Aloud's first two singles,peaking at number three. "Some Kind of Miracle" was replaced again,this time with their cover of "Jump",recorded for the Love Actually soundtrack. The music video for "Jump" was made to appear like it was intertwined with Love Actually. The song debuted at number two on the UK Singles Chart. [35] "You Freak Me Out" was due for release,with Girls Aloud even performing it on television;however,Girls Aloud proceeded to record their second studio album What Will the Neighbours Say? .
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [21] |
BBC Music | (positive) [28] |
BBC News | (positive) [22] |
Drowned in Sound | (8/10) [29] |
Entertainment.ie | [20] |
The Guardian | [17] |
RTÉ.ie | [19] |
Yahoo! Music | [15] |
Sound of the Underground received generally favourable reviews from music critics. The Times noted that Sound of the Underground "is packed with everything you want from a pop record –attitude,aggression,guitars,disco beats and steals from Phil Spector." [16] Yahoo! Music said that Girls Aloud "have made a seriously fine debut album. OK,so it's not Blonde on Blonde , Innervisions or OK Computer ,but it may well be another Spice ." [15] A number of reviews noted the high quality of the album compared to output from other reality show contestants. [15] It was said that "Girls Aloud are on the better end of the commercial pop scale." [19] Ian Youngs of BBC News bluntly stated,"Reality pop is not supposed to be this good." [22] BBC Music said "time will tell if they are set to take the mantle as the new Spice Girls or slip rapidly down pops dumper as the new Hear'Say. But their debut album is sure to shut up at least some of their cynics,myself included." [28]
However,many reviewers agreed that the album's quality declined towards the end. [16] [20] [22] [28] RTÉ.ie wrote,"After a while it does start sounding a bit samey but for a manufactured pop album,this is a fairly standard fault." [19] The ballads featured on Sound of the Underground were slated. [16] [17] Andrew Lynch of entertainment.ie said that "the ill-advised attempt to show off their sensitive side results in some truly dismal ballads." [20]
The album debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart behind Justin Timberlake's debut studio album Justified (2002). Selling 38,000 copies in its first week [36] it went on to sell 300,000,achieving a platinum certificate,their first of many. Spending only eighteen weeks in the charts the album was later re-released to feature new songs. [37] This release only managed to peak at number forty-two but is now the only commercial print of the album.
The album was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) on 6 June 2003. [38] It was certified platinum five months later. [39]
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Sound of the Underground.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Sound of the Underground" |
| 3:41 | |
2. | "No Good Advice" |
|
| 3:48 |
3. | "Some Kind of Miracle" |
|
| 3:09 |
4. | "All I Need (All I Don't)" |
| Peters & Peters | 3:38 |
5. | "Life Got Cold" |
|
| 3:57 |
6. | "Mars Attack" |
| Betty Boo and the Beatmasters | 3:28 |
7. | "Stop" |
|
| 3:35 |
8. | "Girls Allowed" |
| Graham Stack | 3:26 |
9. | "Forever and a Night" |
|
| 3:17 |
10. | "Love/Hate" |
|
| 4:40 |
11. | "Boogie Down Love" |
| Betty Boo and the Beatmasters | 3:22 |
12. | "Don't Want You Back" | Arnthor & BAG | 3:19 | |
13. | "White Lies" |
| Kellett | 4:00 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
14. | "Love Bomb" |
| Betty Boo and the Beatmasters | 2:55 |
15. | "Everything You Ever Wanted" |
| Anderson | 2:53 |
Total length: | 53:44 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Sound of the Underground" (alternative vocal mix) |
|
| 3:39 |
2. | "Jump" (from Love Actually) |
|
| 3:39 |
3. | "Girls on Film" | Duran Duran | Xenomania | 3:40 |
4. | "Lights, Music, Camera, Action" |
|
| 3:11 |
5. | "On a Round" | Korpi & BlackCell | 2:42 | |
6. | "No Good Advice" (parental advisory version) |
|
| 3:46 |
7. | "Sacred Trust" | Bee Gees | Ian Curnow | 5:00 |
8. | "Life Got Cold" (radio edit) |
|
| 3:29 |
9. | "Grease" (from Greasemania) | Barry Gibb | Betty Boo & The Beatmasters | 3:27 |
10. | "Hopelessly Devoted to You" (from Greasemania) | John Farrar | Stack | 3:14 |
11. | "Some Kind of Miracle" (new mix) |
|
| 3:19 |
12. | "You Freak Me Out" (from Freaky Friday ) |
|
| 3:05 |
13. | "No Good Advice" (original demo) |
|
| 3:52 |
14. | "Stay Another Day" |
|
| 4:20 |
Total length: | 50:34 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Sound of the Underground" (instrumental breakdown mix) |
|
| 3:39 |
2. | "Girls Allowed" (almighty radio edit; from Love Actually) |
| Stack | 3:39 |
3. | "Some Kind of Miracle" (illicit mix) |
|
| 3:40 |
4. | "Life Got Cold" (Stella Browne vocal mix) |
|
| 3:11 |
5. | "No Good Advice" (Dreadzone vocal mix) |
|
| 2:42 |
6. | "Jump" (Almighty vocal mix) |
|
| 3:46 |
7. | "Sound of the Underground" (Flip & Fill remix) |
|
| 5:00 |
8. | "Life Got Cold" (29 Palms remix edit) |
|
| 3:29 |
9. | "No Good Advice" (Flip & Fill remix) |
|
| 3:27 |
10. | "Jump" (Flip & Fill remix) |
| 3:14 | |
11. | "No Good Advice" (Doublefunk vocal mix) |
|
| 3:19 |
12. | "Girls Allowed" (Almighty vocal mix) |
| Stack | 3:05 |
Total length: | 76:00 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Sound of the Underground" |
|
| 3:41 |
2. | "No Good Advice" |
|
| 3:48 |
3. | "Life Got Cold" (radio edit) |
|
| 3:57 |
4. | "Jump" (from Love Actually) |
|
| 3:39 |
5. | "Some Kind of Miracle" (new mix) |
|
| 3:19 |
6. | "All I Need (All I Don't)" |
| Peters & Peters | 3:38 |
7. | "Mars Attack" |
| Betty Boo and the Beatmasters | 3:28 |
8. | "You Freak Me Out" (from Freaky Friday) |
|
| 3:01 |
9. | "Girls Allowed" |
| Stack | 3:26 |
10. | "Forever and a Night" |
|
| 3:17 |
11. | "Love/Hate" |
|
| 4:40 |
12. | "Boogie Down Love" |
| Betty Boo and the Beatmasters | 3:22 |
13. | "Stop" |
| Xenomania | 3:35 |
14. | "White Lies" |
| Kellett | 3:06 |
15. | "Girls on Film" (United Kingdom bonus track) | Duran Duran | Xenomania | 3:42 |
16. | "Sound of the Underground" (music video) |
| Xenomania | 3:46 |
17. | "No Good Advice" (music video) |
| Xenomania | 3:54 |
18. | "Life Got Cold" (music video) |
| Xenomania | 4:05 |
Total length: | 55:04 |
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [45] | Platinum | 368,000 [46] |
Region | Date | Edition(s) | Format(s) | Label(s) | Catalog | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ireland | 23 May 2003 | Standard | Polydor | 9865315 | [47] [48] | |
Europe | 26 May 2003 | Universal Music | 9865319 | |||
United Kingdom | Polydor | 9865315 | ||||
Ireland | 17 November 2003 | Reissue | 9865961 | [49] [50] | ||
United Kingdom | ||||||
United States | 26 June 2007 | Standard | Digital download | Interscope | — | |
Various | 16 June 2023 | Deluxe 20th anniversary edition | CD, digital download, streaming, vinyl | Universal Music Operations | — | [51] |
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 the United Kingdom'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 debut at number one on the UK Albums Chart. They have been nominated for five Brit Awards, winning the 2009 Best Single for "The Promise".
Nadine Elizabeth Louise Coyle is an Irish singer. In 2002, she was selected as a member of Girls Aloud, a pop girl group created through ITV's reality competition show Popstars: The Rivals. The group went on to receive large success, achieving a string of 20 consecutive UK top ten singles, two UK number one albums, five consecutive platinum selling studio albums, and receiving nominations for five BRIT Awards, winning Best Single in 2009 for "The Promise".
Xenomania is an English songwriting and production team founded by Brian Higgins and based in Kent. Formed by Higgins with his Creative Director Miranda Cooper and Business Director Sarah Stennett of First Access Entertainment, Xenomania has written and produced for artists such as Cher, Kylie Minogue, Dannii Minogue, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Pet Shop Boys, The Saturdays and Sugababes. In particular, all but one of Girls Aloud's studio albums have been entirely written and produced by Xenomania. Sugababes' "Round Round" and Girls Aloud's "Sound of the Underground" have been credited with reshaping British pop music for the 2000s. Gabriella Cilmi's "Sweet About Me" and Girls Aloud's "The Promise" were named Best Single at the ARIA Music Awards of 2008 and the 2009 BRIT Awards, respectively.
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.
Miranda Eleanor De Fonbrune Cooper is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, dancer and television presenter. Miranda Cooper has worked in the music industry since 1996 when she gained her first recording contract. She worked as a professional dancer for artists such as Dannii Minogue before going into television presenting.
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".
"Jump (For My Love)" is an electropop song by American girl group the Pointer Sisters, released on April 11, 1984, as the third single from their tenth studio album, Break Out (1983). The song hit the top ten on the US Billboard Hot 100, R&B, and Dance charts, and it was the best-selling American dance single of 1984, sold as a trio of songs including "I Need You" and "Automatic". The song features June Pointer on lead vocals and scored global chart success.
"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.
"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.
"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.
"Whole Lotta History" is a song by British all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken 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. Described as "a lush ballad", "Whole Lotta History" was slightly remixed and released as a single in March 2006. It continued Girls Aloud's string of hits by becoming their twelfth consecutive single to chart within the top ten on the UK Singles Chart.
"Something Kinda Ooooh" is a song by British-Irish all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken from their first greatest hits collection The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits (2006). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Inspired by 1980s pop and George Michael, "Something Kinda Ooooh" was released as a single in October 2006. It returned Girls Aloud to the top three of the UK Singles Chart for the first time in two years. It also made Girls Aloud the first British act to debut in the top five on the chart based on legal download sales alone.
Tangled Up is the fourth studio album by English-Irish girl group Girls Aloud. It was released through Fascination Records and Polydor Records on 16 November 2007, and was distributed in two physical formats and made available for digital consumption. The album is a pop record that incorporates elements of dance-pop, synth-pop, and various EDM sub-genres produced by long time-collaborators Brian Higgins and production team Xenomania. Marking a more mature approach according to group member Cheryl, the album lyrically delves into themes of love, relationships and femininity, and it was the group's first experimentation with tools such as autotune and vocoder. Production and development began with each member meeting with Higgins to discuss their personal and professional experiences since the release of their third album Chemistry (2005). It was recorded separately from April to October 2007, with the band members earning songwriting credits for two tracks off the album.
"Here We Go" is a pop song written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, and Matt Gray, originally recorded by Cooper under the alias Moonbaby. The song was initially released as Moonbaby's first single in 2000, later being covered by Lene Nystrøm in 2003 and Girls Aloud in 2004. A version with rewritten lyrics appears as the theme music of the French/Canadian animated television series Totally Spies!.
The What Will the Neighbours Say...? Tour was the first concert tour by British all-female pop group Girls Aloud. It supported their first two studio albums, Sound of the Underground and What Will the Neighbours Say?. Girls Aloud initially planned to tour in 2003 with their fellow Popstars: The Rivals contestants; however, the tour was cancelled due to poor ticket sales. Girls Aloud announced their first headlining tour in December 2004. Girls Aloud performed 22 dates in theatre-sized venues across the United Kingdom and Ireland, beginning in Nottingham on 4 May 2005 and concluding in Dublin on 2 June 2005.
"Some Kind of Miracle" is a song by British all-female pop group Girls Aloud, appearing on their debut studio 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. One of six songs produced by Xenomania for Sound of the Underground, "Some Kind of Miracle" was also remixed by Illicit.