Tuesday 3 January 2012

Scissor Sisters vs Krystal Pepsy - Shady Love



January is definitely the month of new music, filled with polls and lists of what we should be looking forward to. What better time, then, to welcome back some old friends who seem to have fallen out of favour over the last couple of years. And what better way of getting back into the good books by employing one of the coolest names in new music - Krystal Pepsy aka Azealia Banks?

This isn't your typical Scissor Sisters track though. Gone is the electro-pop fizzle of their first album, dropped in favour of a more urban/house flavour and a dirty beat. It's a more modern interpretation of disco tracks like Filthy/Gorgeous. The influence of Azealia Banks is clear as she takes over vocal duties, with a similar build up to her own track 212. Shady Love takes a while to get going, the first minute or so sounding pretty alien to Sisters fans. Once the chorus drops and the disparate elements come together (especially at the middle eight), the hooks take hold to form a decent pop track that's suitable for the charts and dancefloors alike - even if the main hook is reminiscent of Anita Baker's Sweet Love. The lyrics, however, are pretty terrible - "She gon' vote for Obama, and she likes to dance with Madonna...mmm hmm". What's worse is frontman Jake Shears's rapping - it's on a similarly uncomfortable level to Madonna and Robbie Williams.

Have Scissor Sisters shoehorned in some new talent in a bid to refresh their sound? Yes. But it also retains their trademark flair for camp. The video continues this, reminding me of Donnie Darko's 'Sparkle Motion'.  Shady Love, after all, is simply a bit of harmless fun.

3/5