It's 99 degrees and the temperature is creepin' up

To close out the month of January, we've got a group everyone knows, but hopefully not a song everyone knows...and before you all give up the moment you hear who it is, just try giving the song a chance; if it came from an unknown group, I have trouble believing it would be met with the passionate hatred that will probably rain down upon it the minute I mention who it's actually by.

Westlife. I've stated my feelings on them before--though I've never bought a full album of theirs (I may do so at some point), I do think they've done some good songs, "Amazing," "World Of Our Own," "If I Let You Go," and especially "When You're Looking Like That" among them. Maybe if I lived in the UK and was forced to listen to all of their songs, my feelings might be different, but since I can pick and choose which songs to listen to, I have nothing against them. Oh, and though I probably wouldn't have liked the album at all, I still think Allow Us To Be Frank was a brilliant title (but this is coming from the girl whose favorite song titles in past years have included "Catch Me When I Fall For You" and "Rockin' On Heaven's Floor," so clearly I like cheesy wordplay).

Anyhow, given that I've not bought any of their albums, I only heard the following song recently, when Paul mentioned their new single "Total Eclipse Of The Heart" was getting remixed and included a link to their MySpace; this song was one of the songs on it, and I immediately liked it. By posting it, I'm hoping to prevent other people from missing out on a good song on an album they might not usually listen to.

Hit You With The Real Thing--first things first: "Hit You With The Real Thing" is uptempo. That might disappoint their ballad fans, but for me, that wins it some automatic points. It also includes phrases like "electro paradise," another "how can you not love it" aspect. Saying the song is electro might be going to far, but it is very danceable and not guitar-driven. It starts out with an admirable amount of tension for a boy band song, thoroughly poppy but with almost the slightest hint of danger, before bursting into the first use of the chorus. One of the big things about Eurovision songs is how long it takes them to hit the chorus; "Hit You With The Real Thing" is sure to give any of them a run for their money by reaching the chorus in 27 seconds. That's right--27 seconds. Given my love for the chorus, that's another point in Westlife's favor--as Roxette would say, don't bore us, get to the chorus (I know, now I'm putting Roxette and Westlife in the same paragraph--how much more heretical can I get)! After that, the verses, which are great, are less minimal and more energetic, though it's still the small explosion of the chorus that seals the deal. Plus, the whole thing's over in under 3 minutes--no messing about or pretension, just pure catchiness and fun and then out. It's a song any boy band from the peak of the boy band era would love to have on their album, but since Westlife made it, many people (myself almost included) will probably never hear it.

To buy Westlife's album Face To Face, go here (physical) or here (digital).

Next up: maybe that Norwegian singer, or the German band, but possibly a dance song.