Sugababes

By Fraser McAlpine I like the fact that he's sort of a UK Ne-Yo - a dapper fella with a strong jawline - AND a UK Akon - squealy voice, does a lot of song-work for other people - all rolled into one. I like the fact that he wrote such a fantastic song for Tinchy Stryder and Amelle Berrebah that it basically destroyed th...

By Fraser McAlpine I'm almost scared to mention the word "Sugababes" in case we all end up getting bogged down with the endless debate over which was better out of Sugababes 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 and now 4.0, and whether (yawn) they still have the right to call themselves Sugababes given the absence of all the original mem...

By Fraser McAlpine Tinchy, can we have a word? We just wanted to check that everything's okay, that you're not struggling to adjust to life as a pop star. The other kids aren't picking on you or anything, are they? We wouldn't normally ask, but it just seems that you seem a bit reluctant to strike out on your own, a...

By Vicki It's also a bit of a safe song for Alexandra. It's very contemporary, fits right in and ticks all the boxes. This can be forgiven, because it not only fits in but raises the bar for the Saturdays, Sugababes et al with a massive, catchy chorus, Alexandra's strong voice and that little twinkly bi...

By Fraser McAlpine Frankie: Um...obviously for us it's like we are the only girl band around at the moment, so that's quite cool, but I think the Sugababes are gonna come back bigger and better. They've just got so much press about it, like literally we've been on the radio tour all week, and all we've been asked abo...

By Vicki Yes, I know 90's euro pop is a big trend at the moment (see: Little Boots, Sugababes, JLS etc for more on that), but guys - not like this. It's awful and sounds like a flipping Westlife song put to an Aqua beat. There's no imagination and no charm. It's a poor man's version of both JLS 'Beat Again' an...

By Fraser McAlpine Hats off to any band with the backbone to start their song with a spare drumbeat like this. It's always a brilliant curtain-raiser, even if you do occasionally find yourself wondering what the song is: something by the Pigeon Detectives? 'Song 2' by Blur? 'About You Now' by the Sugababes? S...

By Fraser McAlpine Mind you, all they really need in order to keep the thing going is one brilliant pop song. Sugababes #2 knew this when they released 'Freak Like Me'. Sugababes #3 knew this when they released 'Red Dress'. And lo and behold, Sugababes #4 have got 'About A Girl' ready to go. And people seem to rather...

By Fraser McAlpine To anyone who felt a little let down that Pixie was originally sold as (yet) another cleaned up Amy Winehouse-type souled-out Duffy junior, these are key reasons to come back and listen again. And to anyone who felt that the Sugababes comeback has been less than astonishing, musically spe...

By Fraser McAlpine Their debut single 'Keep Your Head Up' is a very nowadays sort of pop song, in that it sounds not unlike 'Up', remixed in a '80s style by La Roux, with some speedy rhythmic Flo Rida-style tongue-twisters in the verses. And if you think that's a lot of name-dropping for just two short paragraph...

By Reggie Yates The Sugababes were live on the show! They also smelt good just like Booty Luv. They missed the top spot of the singles chart...but revealed that since Jay-Z is now technically their boss in the US they're not so... The Sugababes were live on the show! They also smelt good just like Booty Luv.

By Fraser McAlpine Brönette says: "Who doesn't love atmospheric, smoke-filled, Rick Ocasek inspired videos?" Breaking More Waves says: "Girls Aloud, The Saturdays, Sugababes, your time is up." Singles Jukebox says: "I simply didn't think La Roux had it in them to make something as ace as this."

By Fraser McAlpine I've had my issues with songs being part of ad campaigns in the past, especially when it feels like they were written with that purpose in mind first and foremost and with functionality as a pop song in their own right a distant second (yes, Sugababes, I'm talking about you), but the joy with...

By Fraser McAlpine The only solution to this situation is just to keep plugging away and ride it out. Girls Aloud hit a similar wave of public meh around the time of their cover of Tiffany's cover of Tommy James & The Shondells' 'I Think We're Alone Now', and now look at them. National treasures, don't you kno...

By Fraser McAlpine Little did we know, a month or so ago, that when the Sugababes sang "here come the girls", they were actually warning everyone that an invasion was on the way. And here it is. A cursory glance down the Top... 2: Beyonce - 'If I Were A Boy' 3: Girls Aloud - 'The Promise' 4: Britney Spears - 'Womanizer'

By Fraser McAlpine Some of the lyrics seem to have been written by Helen 'Bridget Jones' Diary' Fielding, with all that stuff about little black dresses and whatnot. Some of the other lyrics seem to have been written by Destiny's Child, given the amount of trumpeting about independent women and how amazing t...

By Fraser M Compared to the McFlys and the Girls Alouds of this world, who've yet to land outside the top ten even with their weaker singles ('See The Day', 'I Think We're Alone Now', 'Star Girl', 'Room on the 3rd Floor' etc etc etc), your average Sugababes fan is apparently not prepared to stand behind...