Date: Sept 27, 2008
Weeks: 1
Pink is one of those singers that crept up on me. When she first came along, she seemed to be a fairly generic R&B singer and I dismissed her as not being terribly interesting. "Get The Party Started" seemed vaguely catchy but vapid. I liked "Don't Let Me Get Me" a little, but it seemed to be atypical of her work to that point. It wasn't until I heard this song in the Rock Band video game that
I discovered Pink had been making rock music with judicious traces of both Punk and R&B, and that her songs were catchy and fun.
The music is this song is excellent. It's a tightly performed, tightly produced rock song with a big wall of sound, and every part contributes to the whole in an excellent way. The lead guitar riff is excellent and attention-grabbing, and quits during the chorus so that it doesn't get annoying. The drum line is driving and is an absolute blast to clap along to. The chorus uses a synthesizer bass that I enjoy. I sometimes complain about synthesizers in the 80s, but by the late 90s and 2000s pop musicians had figured out how to use the particular timbre of synthesizers to their advantage. There's a higher-pitched, warbling snyth sound in the chorus that risks being superfluous, but it contributes to the intentional chaos of the overall sound
That chaos really seems to be the intent, because the lyrics are all about the anger of getting over an ended relationship. She's declaring that she's going to be fine for all kinds of reasons. "I don't need you." "I'm having more fun." And now she can see that the relationship wasn't that great anyway. "You weren't there. You never were." As many whiny, weepy, denial-based breakup songs as I've reviewed, I'm glad to find one that is the perfect song for the moment you realize that you're actually glad to be out of that relationship.
The vocals in the chorus are the part of the song that is probably the most fun. Rather than singing, Pink practically shouts. I bet this song is an absolute blast to see performed live, with the audience participating in a shout-along at the top of their lungs. In a clever touch, Pink gets to show off her actual vocal abilities by doing her own backup singing in the last chorus. In those backup flourishes, she actually opens up and sings in a way that feels raw and exposed and a bit painful. And I think it's that pain in her voice that gives me the interpretation that despite her brave front, she is a bit hurt by the breakup. I had that idea after listening to the song the first time and when I went back to review the lyrics I couldn't find any support for it. But then I realized it's not in the lyrics, it's in the vocals. Even though she's sure she's better off now, she's still a little hurt over it. And that depth is communicated in the performance rather than the music or the lyrics. And that's an excellent performance that can communicate that.
My verdict: Like it. It was just plain fun the first time I listened to it, and revealed hidden emotional depths after several listens. This song is everything pop music should aspire to be.
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