Strictly Physical is the second studio album by all-female German pop trio Monrose. It was released by Starwatch Music in association with Cheyenne Records and Warner Music on 21 September 2007 in German-speaking Europe and on 8 October 2007 in parts of Eastern Europe. Released only nine months after its best-selling predecessor Temptation (2006), the album took Monrose's work further into dance and electro music, featuring main production by Danish producers Remee, Thomas Troelsen, and Peter Biker, as well as British composers from production collectives Jiant, and Snowflakers.
In fall 2006, Senna Gammour, Bahar Kizil, and Mandy Capristo won the fifth installment of German reality talent show Popstars and formed the trio Monrose.[1] Their debut single "Shame" was an instant number-one success throughout German-speaking Europe, as the fastest selling CD single of 2006 and the biggest-downloaded song since the introduction of the legal digital download charts in Germany in 2004.[2] The band's debut album, Temptation debuted on top of the Austrian, German and Swiss albums charts and was certified platinum by the IFPI for more than 200,000 copies sold within its first two weeks of release.[3] It eventually sold more than 600,000 copies domestically.[4]
In early 2007, the trio qualified for the German national pre-selection of the Eurovision Song Contest 2007, organized and broadcast by the ARD, with their second single "Even Heaven Cries".[5] Although they were considered early favourites by the media,[5] the band eventually finished second.[6] Following this, the band announced their Venus Temptation Tour with twenty dates, beginning at the Hanover Capitol on 29 April 2007. Sponsored by Global Gillette, the concert tour was accompanied by intense media coverage since it failed to produce any sold-out show, and thus four concerts had to be cancelled due to low ticket sales.[7][8]
Strictly Physical received a generally mixed reception from music critics. MusikWoche observed that the album distinguishes itself from its predecessor through notable artistic development and production quality aligned with international standards.[14] The magazine ranked "Hot Summer", "Strictly Physical" and "What You Don't Know" among the best tracks on the album.[14]Energy Zürich described the album as "groovy, feel-good songs that are universally danceable, blending elements of R&B and pop" and further wrote: "Tracks guaranteed to set any dance floor on fire. In that sense, lyrical depth takes a backseat. Catchy melodies, light-hearted lyrics, and three attractive young women who know how to market themselves define the second album of these talent show stars."[10]
Julia Dörfler from laut.de called the album a "more mature and individual" but generally "well-snitched" output in comparison with the band's debut album. She praised Strictly Physical for its experimental production towards electro and contemporary R&B music.[11]CDStarts critic Albert Ranner remarked that "right from the opener "Dangerous," an electro-house beat pulses through the speakers, setting the tone for an album largely driven by thumping dance rhythms. Aside from the obligatory ballads, the remaining tracks wrap themselves in club-ready beats—some distancing themselves entirely from R&B, while others maintain varying degrees of connection to the genre. The result is a collection of appealing, if mostly average, pop songs."[9] Jochen Overbeck from Monsters & Critics concluded: "It fulfills all expectations and will likely perform well commercially, but it fails to establish any real artistic depth,"[15] while LetMeEntertainYou deemed the album "strictly unnecessary" and added: "Unfortunately, a distinct style for the girls is still missing; as before, the sound is copied from currently trending US stars [...] Even in terms of vocals, the Monrose girls are unable to stand out."
Commercial performance
While the album failed to reprise the huge success of Temptation, missing a number-one peak anywhere, it became another success for the band: It debuted at number 2 on the German Media Control albums chart and reached the top 10 in Austria and Switzerland, shipping more than 90.000 copies in its first week of release.[16] As of January 2008, Strictly Physical has been certified gold by both the Austrian and the German branch of the IFPI for more than 50,000 and 100,000 sold copies respectively.[17][18]
The album spawned three singles, however, a fourth was scrapped in favour of production of a new album.[citation needed] The lead single "Hot Summer" became the band's second number-one hit in Austria, Germany and Switzerland and one of the biggest-selling songs of the year on German online music stores,[19] also obtaining success in Scandinavia, Eastern Europe and the Benelux states.[20] Its follow-up single "Strictly Physical" became Monrose's first top 10 entry on the Polish Top 50 since their debut release "Shame" (2006), while the ballad "What You Don't Know" became their fifth consecutive top 10 single in Germany, although it failed to reach the top 20 in Switzerland.
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