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I hear Girls Aloud have a new single coming out called “Sexy No No No”. I could review that song. But I don’t want to.

Let’s go on a little journey into the annals of history and review Sound Of The Underground instead, their debut single. It was back in the heady days of 2002 when Girls Aloud won Popstars and released this just in time for Christmas.

Not Playing It Safe

What’s unique about Sound Of The Underground (and indeed most Girls Aloud songs) is that it’s an original composition. Admittedly not composed by the group, but a big leap considering that record companies generally don’t take great leaps of faith with reality TV produced talent. The record companies and management usually play it safe by sticking to cover versions.

Another masterstroke (oh, hindsight’s a wonderful thing!) is that they didn’t saddle the girls with a twee ballad, nor did they dress the group up as a Spice Girls-lite. Sound Of The Underground was a bold move because it didn’t play to the public’s preconceptions of what a girl group should be. The song was gritty, had a dirty bass groove and that distinctive surf guitar sound.

The Video

The video backed this up 100%, set as it was in a grungy basement with the girls performing with a band. Better still, they were performing in a steel cage. I still can’t work out whether that was for their protection or ours…

Looking back, it’s fairly clear that sound Of The Underground set Girls Aloud apart from other girl groups of the time (except perhaps Sugababes) and gave them a good deal of credibility which lasted well beyond the usual blast of exposure a popular reality TV show can bring.