MUSIC
Make Your Valentine's Week Pop
Nicki Minaj, Katy Perry and Cassie vie to be your pop valentine with their new singles.
Whether your Valentines week is a romantic affair or a blub fest into a bucket of ice cream you can at least rely on some popstars to brighten things up. Here we unveil three fresh new singles for your listening pleasure.
Katy Perry - Part of Me
A demo of this leaked months ago with many speculating Perry was to reissue her successful second album Teenage Dream. It was recently pulled from the web and lo and behold a deluxe repackage of Teenage Dream, entitled the Complete Confection is announced. Part of Me is to serve as the lead single and was performed by Katy at the Grammys last weekend
That may reek of cash in but Part of Me is still a stomping pop tune that lodges in the head on first listen. It is basically every song she's down in the last year rehashed to bits and while it feels completely derivative it also has an addictive quality and a solid gold hook that will likely give this a healthy shelf life at radio.
Gossip mongers will likely remark that this is a barbed comment on Russell Brand but given that the song was probably recorded over a year ago we doubt that's intentional. Still that idle speculation will only help this song soar up the charts although really, we don't think it needs it.
Cassie - King of Hearts
Cassie had a huge R&B with the icy, sexy Me & U in 2006. Little else happened on the charts for the stunning singer/model/actress but she has picked up a cult following amongst bloggers, fashion writers et al over the last few years while working on an oft delayed second album.
King of Hearts arrived this month with the saucy video debuting this week. The track takes it's cues from the similar icy, drawl of Me & U but layers it in a shimmering bed of synths and Euro-pop flourishes that make this a slice of dance-pop with an detached, moody feel. Cassie's voice is admittedly thin but has a certain charm to it. Certainly she's not aiming for Mariah style warbling so much as a sexy, knowing performance.
The video is simple but basically allows Cassie to romp around looking gorgeous, insanely hot and scantily clad. It'll surely delight her many admirers but it'll hard to tell if this track can relaunch her into the wider pop consciousness once again. Still, King of Hearts is a solid club-pop track with an interesting structure and a suitably sexy video.
Nicki Minaj - Starships
This New York rapper has certainly been busy marking her mark on the mainstream enjoying her first solo smash with Super Bass last year, recently landing on Madonna's new single and teasing her forthcoming second album. Her over the top Grammy performance left many scratching their head but this track, the first official single from Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded is a clear winner.
Taking the same pop meets rap sensibility of Super Bass and putting it on steroids, it's an impossibly jaunty party tune with a David Geutta style breakdown bit that will have you flailing around the club in jig time. There are plenty of bizaare flourishes, such as snatch of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star(!) appearing at one point but huge chorus confirms this as the next big hit for Miss Nicki Minaj.
So there you have it. The perfect soundtrack to the week of love, a song about breaking up with your fella, another about not really liking someone that much and one about getting drunk and spaceships. Who says pop music isn't romantic?
- Conor Behan
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