My curiosity is piqued by the mixed critical reaction The Pipettes are getting now that the album is out. I think it’s because the critics aren’t quite sure how to take them. Are they some kind of oldies revival band, a sort of Sha Na Na for the iPod set? A post-feminist deconstruction of a female-oriented genre? Somebody’s idea of an insider joke? A sorority initiation prank turned into a record deal?
The critics should really stop thinking and start dancing. It’s enough to know that The Pipettes like Phil Spector, sing perfect three-part harmony, and look better in polka-dot dresses than anyone since the demise of Strawberry Switchblade two decades ago. They may be clever, they may be sassy, but as they’re happy to tell you in the frothy, swirling lead single “Pull Shapes,” they just want to dance — they don’t care what the song’s about.
People who insist on intellectualism over emotion, who judge the success of a song by the virtuosity of its performance, and who don’t like unabashed pop music won’t like The Pipettes. As for the rest of us, we’ll be out on the dance floor where we can’t hear your bellyaching.
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I really think there is something to be said for mindless entertainment. C’mon it’s what made “Herbie: Fully-Loaded” such a box office smash.
We can’t have Revolution, Revolution, Revolution non-stop…
Sometimes it’s got to be Revolution, Gumdrop, Revolution.
it’s settled - i am naming my next band gumdrop revolution. we’re gonna blow the pipettes out of the water.
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Comment by tyler — August 8, 2006 @ 7:42 am
The Pipettes are just a ripoff of The Feminine Complex with a little more energy.
I don’t think championing mindless pop is a nobel cause. I mean, isn’t there a reason we’ve been fighting to get away from that for 50 years? I get that it’s kitsch, but kitsch does not a great band make.
That said, they’re alright for a listen. The blonde with the good vision is deadly, too - which can never hurt.