There’s a song burning up the pop charts right now called “Marvin Gaye”. It’s a duet between Charlie Puth and Meghan Trainor, and it’s terrible, an empty, soulless classic-pop pastiche that understands neither its subject or that homages should evoke without Xeroxing.
The Pipettes, a UK-bred Ronettes-style girl-group one-off, could teach Mr. Puth a lot about repurposing the Phil Spector vibe he inexplicably goes for (read: staples a workaday melody to the “Stand By Me” bassline and calls it a day). Backed by The Cassettes, the adorable Brit trio peels off hit after glorious pop hit on their sole true album, We Are the Pipettes (the name and concept resurfaced a few years later with an entirely reformed line-up, and an uncomfortable Spice Girls vibe). Winding, serpentine vocals wrap around each other before dovetailing in perfect three-part harmony; The Pipettes are true heirs to the long-vacant girl-group throne, introducing modern themes into a style while exploiting the sort of sugar-rush, doe-eyed sentiment that made that style so potent in the first place.
Swirling string-section trills and briskly arpeggiated guitars are the order of the day. “Tell Me What You Want” incorporates all this to perfection, sounding like a fantastic “Grease” outtake, while “It Hurts to See You Dance So Well” ramps up the tempo and the emotion, like Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own” run through a time machine.
And yet, nothing’s quite as perfect as “Pull Shapes”, which ties everything great about The Pipettes into a tight little package and wraps it with a bow; it’s not just the greatest pop song on this album, it might be one of the greatest pop songs ever written, the most infectious and genuine thing I’ve ever heard.
For this reason, the rest of this review will not feature words. Instead, I’d like you, dear reader, to take a moment to allow the Pipettes to take you to pop nirvana with “Pull Shapes”. Listen to it once for the sugar rush, and then listen to it again and wonder why we’ve allowed Meghan Trainor to happen as a culture when others are making her shtick sound good.
Drew's Album of the Day 