The Pipettes

A glorious, Technicolor knee in pop’s groin. ‘We Are The Pipettes’ over the course of 14 tracks invents the kind of girl-power The Spice Girls could only dream of. Whilst referencing the likes of The Shangri-La’s, The Crystals, The Shirelles, et al, both sonically and in style, whereas the girls of yesteryear were happy to defer to the men in their lives (He Hit Me It Felt Like A Kiss, Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?) on tracks such as One Night Stand (I left You Alone/At four in the morning / not a stitch to wear/ because you ignored my warning) or Your Kisses Are Wasted On Me (Can’t You See We’re Through/Boy get out of my face!) it’s plain to see The Pipettes are calling the shots. Although Brill-building, Motown and Spector references are inevitable (The Pipettes understand who made the greatest pop music) perhaps the most apt comparison would be with The Ramones. Like da bruddas, these sisters have created a record that whilst understanding pop music’s past are forging ahead in their own image.

‘We Are The Pipettes’ is an album written by teenagers for teenagers. An album that understands the heartbreak of leaving the disco alone (It Hurts To See You Dance So Well), tells stories of befriending the school’s outcast (Judy) and the older boyfriend who only wants one thing (Sex). However it’s the tunes that are most important – quite simply nobody is writing more infectious melodies than The Pipettes right now. Whether it be the string-drenched, four to the floor, call to the dance-floor that is lead single, Pull Shapes or the lonesome melancholy of A Winter’s Sky this is a record that attaches itself to your subconscious and refuses to let go…