I'm struggling on this. I really don't want to spend the money on something that I'm not going to enjoy. But it's now a matter of conscience - having downloaded Sweet7, the new version, I ought to pay for it. Besides, a portion of the royalties will go to Keisha, who has some song-writing credits, I believe.
The album's getting uniformly bad reviews. That's no surprise. Catfights and Spotlights had mixed reviews - even though it was an authentic Sugababes album. There's a clutch of reviewers who've never liked the band and cannot be bothered to listen properly.
There is a second bunch of reviewers who, I think, are genuinely disappointed. As one said, "indistinguishable" from any other girl band. Here's a typical bad review in the Metro, a widely distributed free paper, found on buses and trains. This reviewer almost gets it: "Gone too are the musical qualities and band personality."
What positive promotion there is comes in the British tabloid press raving about the younger look of the new line-up. Not exactly based on the music - and that's a shame for Jade Ewen, who is talented.
As I write this I'm listening to the Youtube video of Keisha singing No More You. There's nothing bland about that performance, nothing conveyor belt. This is a great singer, who has matured in the last ten years. Can she write songs? Why not - let's find out. Let's hope she's given the chance to produce a great and soulful album.
I don't think Sweet7 would ever have been as good as Change and Angels. It lacks the strong lead of songs like Freak Like Me and About You Now. Get Sexy was never of that quality and neither was Girls on Catfights.
But what we've heard of the original - and the quality of the songs- suggests it would have been a good and distinctive album. Sad.
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