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Posted by: Slick 31st March 2007, 08:33 PM

I bargain-binned this yesterday and I'm half way through it now. I must say, it was a brilliant purchase - there's not been a song I don't like yet

Pop perfection

Posted by: Slick 31st March 2007, 08:51 PM

I take it back, the second half is distinctly average Then again, Girls Aloud songs ALWAYS grow on me, so we shall see

Posted by: Feel_the_Fever 31st March 2007, 09:06 PM

how much did u get it for,also was it the original oe 2nd edition you bought??

Posted by: Slick 31st March 2007, 09:08 PM

It was £3.99

I don't know about your second question. How do you know if it's first or second edition?

Ooh wait, it has Jump on it. So it's second edition?

Posted by: Feel_the_Fever 31st March 2007, 10:53 PM

ya if jump is on you got the 2nd edition its the better of the 2

Posted by: Slick 1st April 2007, 10:26 AM

Yeah it has 3 videos on it too I think I might consider getting the other two albums on the back of this one.

Posted by: spiker 1st April 2007, 01:30 PM

QUOTE(Slick @ Apr 1 2007, 11:26 AM)

Yeah it has 3 videos on it too I think I might consider getting the other two albums on the back of this one.

Posted by: Poprocks87 1st April 2007, 01:39 PM

SOTU is my less favourite, probably because I got it after WWTNS and Chemistry.

You should get WWTNS though, this is POP HEAVEN! The ultimate pop album IMO.

Posted by: Matt Aloud 1st April 2007, 06:41 PM

the original is best Love Bomb

plus my original one is signed

Posted by: Lewis! 2nd April 2007, 07:31 AM

Are these in woolworths by anychance

They are so cheap at the moment, you might aswell get them WWTNS is pure pop genius, and Chemistry is really good aswell!

Posted by: Slick 2nd April 2007, 09:43 AM

Mine was from Sainsbury's

I might check Woolworths sometime this week though!

Posted by: Feel_the_Fever 2nd April 2007, 04:18 PM

i boughthe album when it was released,first week actually but i neve rbough the 2nd edition of the album

Posted by: Slick 3rd April 2007, 08:14 PM

LOVING this now It also has my two favourite GA singles on it

Posted by: Feel_the_Fever 3rd April 2007, 11:49 PM

i like dthe album but hated life got cold

Posted by: Tafty 29th March 2021, 05:33 PM

Didn't know where else to put this so I'll just drop it here (if a mod has a more suitable/fresh topic for it, feel free to move there instead!)

But I'm doing a Girls Aloud album listen through (I've definitely hear every album at LEAST once - this is just a refresher as I only ever remember how much I like 'Tangled Up' & 'Out of Control' lol), so here is my thoughts on the 'Sound of the Underground' album:

---

As we head into the album, I liked all the singles except 'Life Got Cold', which I find dreary, monotonous and quite frankly the dullest thing they've ever recorded. 'Sound of the Underground' always blows my mind when you think how successful it was and yet reality show winners have never been as daring to release a song quite to the same degree as their coronation winners single. I don't get why this wasn't the blueprint to continue the more risky singles choices. Classic. I think it's held up surprisingly strong too. 'No Good Advice' was a nice 2nd single choice, it's never been a favourite, but it's always been a reliable one to enjoy and 'Jump' is a lot of fun!

Why does 'Some Kind of Miracle' have a "Single Mix"? Was it planned to be one? I can see why tbh, I just wish it had gone a bit harder and had a lil bit more impact.

My Ranking:
1. Sound of the Underground
2. You Freak Me Out
3. Don't Want You Back
4. Jump
5. No Good Advice
6. Mars Attack
7. White Lies
8. All I Need (All I Don't)
9. Some Kind of Miracle
10. Stop
11. Forever and A Night
12. Everything You Ever Wanted
13. Boogie Down Love
14. Girls Allowed
15. Love Bomb
16. Girls On Film
17. Love / Hate
18. Life Got Cold

'You Freak Me Out' could have been a great single. It's melodic and very catchy. It's very early-mid 00's, but that's OK! A bop. 'Mars Attack' is like a lesser SOTU but it's good! Kinda gives me Britney vibes for some reason too, does anyone else get that? Maybe not, but I do haha. Was 'All I Need (All I Don't)' the early stages of a Rachel Stevens demo? It's sounds like something she'd record for 'So Good' (maybe, again, with tighter and more fulfilling production). It's a bop though!

Yeah, 'Life Got Cold' is definitely my least favourite on here (sorry to those who like it). Everything else is cute though. I have an issue in that a fair few of the songs don't punch hard enough, imo. But it's a solid debut album. It's nothing "amazing" but it's enjoyable enough. I probably wouldn't choose to listen to anything outside the top 7 or 8 outside of the album, but it's decent enough.

Album Rankings:
01. Sound of the Underground

Posted by: Jay❄ 29th March 2021, 06:06 PM

Don't forget Don't Want You Back, Love Bomb and Everything You Ever Wanted from the original album, Jonjo! (+ the original mix of Some Kind of Miracle, which imo is superior to the updated mix).

This album came out before S Club split up so I don't think any of these tracks would have fallen on Rachel's lap at that point!

It's definitely puzzling that Sound of the Underground didn't become a blueprint for winners singles. As much as I don't actually mind Cannonball, Little Mix deserved a great original first single just like Girls Aloud.

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 29th March 2021, 07:48 PM

Girls Aloud set the bar for having a brilliant winning single and i agree Little Mix deserved a great winning single, like you i like cannonball but it really didnt represent the type of group they were but sound of the underground represented Girls Aloud brilliantly.

Posted by: pippa 29th March 2021, 11:16 PM

Girls Aloud had a real statement debut single, it was edgy and cool and set their career off to the strong start they needed.
One True Voice were given such a dud in comparison and they had to have been very disappointed when they heard what the girls were releasing.

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 30th March 2021, 12:46 AM

It helped that the brill no good advice was the follow up single, I remember hearing it for the first a time and loving it from the off.

Posted by: Last Dreamer 30th March 2021, 05:57 AM

It's my least favourite GA album, but "Some Kind Of Miracle" and "No Good Advice" are great pop songs.

Posted by: jakewild 30th March 2021, 10:42 AM

QUOTE(Lewis! @ Apr 2 2007, 08:31 AM)

Are these in woolworths by anychance

They are so cheap at the moment, you might aswell get them WWTNS is pure pop genius, and Chemistry is really good aswell!

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 30th March 2021, 01:11 PM

Their debut could have been stronger but as debuts go it wasnt bad and set things up nicely for the huge career they had ahead.

Posted by: pippa 30th March 2021, 02:40 PM

Life Got Cold was a big let down in quality after Sound of the Underground and No Good Advice which were both edgy and different to what other girl bands were delivering at that time in the charts.

Posted by: Tawdry Hepburn 30th March 2021, 02:57 PM

I don't mind a bit of 'Life Got Cold', although I remember it got a lot of ridicule at the time (particularly from the Radio 1 DJs) for sounding a bit like 'Wonderwall'.

'You Freak Me Out' and 'Some Kind of Miracle' were at one point mooted to be singles on the release schedule, I can't recall if it was before or after 'Jump' though.

Posted by: Jay❄ 30th March 2021, 03:55 PM

If I remember correctly, Some Kind of Miracle was going to be 4th but they went with Jump instead, and You Freak Me Out was meant to come out after Jump - they performed it on CD:UK and it was referred to by the host as their new single!

Apparently their second single was initially intended to be a Hear’Say unreleased left over track (If You Wanna Roll) but I’m not sure if that’s just a rumour, and if it was true it’s interesting that it went from single potential to not even making it onto the album.

Posted by: Tafty 30th March 2021, 04:04 PM

QUOTE(Jay❄ @ Mar 29 2021, 07:06 PM)

QUOTE(Tafty @ Mar 29 2021, 06:33 PM)

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 30th March 2021, 04:42 PM

Some kind of miracle, dont want you back would have made better singles than the dreary life git cold.

Posted by: Chemistry 31st March 2021, 05:39 AM

I'm surprised with the hate Life Got Cold is getting in here! I've always loved the moody feel of the song and thought it's one of the strongest songs on the album and worked really well as a single (maybe not perfect for a summer release though). It did sound a lot more mature and 'them' than most of the other songs, which is also the problem I have with this album. It's a decent pop album, but a bit all over the place. The first two singles were SO strong and the rest cannot keep up. Maybe not that strange given it was released just a few months after they started but it really is all over the place without having a real identity or being cohesive. A song like You Freak Me Out could have easily be recorded by someone like Hilary Duff around that time, with that American pop-rock sound that doesn't really fit them.

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 31st March 2021, 08:15 PM

I agree the album was rushed as it was released so quick after their formation but i get why they did that as they wanted to take advantage of the all the hype etc, ya im one of the haters of life got cold and always has been, maybe if i didnt love the first 2 singles as much as i did or do i would have taken to the song more but i just found it a complete wet blanket following its 2 predecessors.

Posted by: Tafty 31st March 2021, 10:13 PM

I don't mind debut albums being "a bit all over the place" tbh (especially for reality TV show winners). I just see it as them trying to find a sound that works for them as they live off the hype of their first singles etc.. so I don't mind if the album itself isn't cohesive or whatever. As long as the majority of the songs click with me, it's fine and Idc. However, I do see it as more of an issue if they don't evolve with their follow ups etc.. (Girls Aloud, Leona and Little Mix are 3 prime examples of how it should be done tbh)

Posted by: Seinfeld 31st March 2021, 11:33 PM

Life Got Cold is great, you guys just suck tbh x

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 1st April 2021, 01:32 AM

QUOTE(Tafty @ Mar 31 2021, 11:13 PM)

Posted by: Liam.k. 1st April 2021, 01:30 PM

The album sounds pretty cohesive to me, very inspired by the 80s and the rise of indie music. I'd say their next album properly established 'their' sound, but you can definitely hear the blueprints of it here. I actually prefer this album to the follow-up. Special shoutouts to 'All I Need (All I Don't)' and 'White Lies'.

I'm curious as to who sings the chorus on 'Forever and a Night'. You can hear Nadine for sure but I don't recognise any of the other girls' vocals at all.

Posted by: Tawdry Hepburn 1st April 2021, 01:54 PM

I always thought 'All I Need (All I Don't)' and this sounded eerily similar:



Are they by the same producer?

Posted by: Liam.k. 1st April 2021, 01:57 PM

Wow they do sound the same! They are indeed by the same producers, Peters & Peters.

Posted by: tommie 1st April 2021, 04:05 PM

It's not entirely unheard of producers re-using the same backing track when something "just" ends up being an album track and they might've felt it could've done more. I'm guessing they literally just spruced up the original instrumental and wrote new lyrics.

Posted by: spiceboy 1st April 2021, 08:52 PM

I actually love this album, it's not the greatest but it's cohesive and catchy as hell. SOTU and NGA advice are the clear stand out singles from the first edition, Jump was obviously an excellent choice from the re-release, I am surprised at the hate Life Got Cold is getting though I thought / think it was a great track again different from most girl bands out there (perhaps a bit Sugababesy but then I think SOTU is Sugababesy aswell)... Some Kind of Miracle was a bit of a missed opportunity at the time, although I don't think it aged as well as the other songs so in the long run probably not.

Posted by: JosephStyles 1st April 2021, 09:07 PM

I've always loved Some Kind of Miracle and would've been happy if it were a part of their single discography! The single mix is

I like this album, it's definitely their weakest but I have a load of memories with it and it's still very good pop music, they just went on to improve and progress beyond the foundations they laid with this. I think the single choices were spot on, surprised at the Life Got Cold hate in here as I've always loved that one! It'd probably be low top 20 if I were to rank their singles but that says more about the quality of the rest.

Posted by: Liam.k. 1st April 2021, 10:14 PM

Life Got Cold is bottom end of their singles discography for me too but it definitely says a lot about the standard of their music. I enjoy it whenever I hear it as it’s quite different for them, never thought of it being Sugababes-esque but I can definitely see the similarity now.

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 2nd April 2021, 08:52 AM

QUOTE(spiceboy @ Apr 1 2021, 09:52 PM)

Posted by: Tawdry Hepburn 2nd April 2021, 09:49 AM

QUOTE(Feel_The_Fever @ Apr 2 2021, 09:52 AM)

Posted by: gooddelta 2nd April 2021, 09:57 AM

I adore the first three singles from this album - I really enjoyed the moody tempo change for Life Got Cold and it always takes me right back to summer 2003 <3 It’s Jump I’ve never been mad on personally, it’s decent for a cover but I never listen to it out of choice.

The other songs I really fondly remember from this era are Forever And A Night (lovely early 00s ballad) and Some Kind Of Miracle, which I think would have turned out to be a solid enough single choice. Not #2 like Jump but a top five at least with the radio mix. Don’t Want You Back was really good too.

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 2nd April 2021, 05:21 PM

QUOTE(Tawdry Hepburn @ Apr 2 2021, 10:49 AM)

Posted by: Jay❄ 5th April 2021, 02:48 AM

Sound of the Underground reissue reached #42 on 7th December 2003, and it sold 26,000 copies to place there. Mis-Teeq’s Eye Candy reissue (released on the same date) didn’t make the Top 100, so it was a very competitive time in the album chart!

On Sunday 30th November 2003, which was the day before the reissue came out, Sound of the Underground’s total sales were 143,000. At the end of 2003 its total stood at 245,000, meaning it sold 102,000 copies in December 2003. 245k was enough to make it the 71st best selling album of the year.

It ended up being a fairly decent trickle seller for them. 4 years later, at the end of December 2007, Sound of the Underground was on sales of just under 355,000 - an increase of 110k. At the end of 2006 it actually re-entered the Top 100 for two weeks - #67 on 31st Dec ‘06 (it sold over 9,000 copies in that week) and #70 on 7th Jan ‘07.

I don’t think the performance of the Sound of the Underground reissue was a reason for their future albums not having reissues - it’s more that the future albums didn’t really require them. Their other albums went Platinum a lot more quickly, and these eras weren’t dragged out long enough for reissues to be viable. They had new Q4 targeted releases in 6 consecutive years - a pretty hectic schedule!

December 2003 - Sound of the Underground (reissue)
November 2004 - What Will the Neighbours Say?
December 2005 - Chemistry
October 2006 - The Sound of Girls Aloud
November 2007 - Tangled Up
November 2008 - Out of Control

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 5th April 2021, 02:51 AM

Great sales breakdown and info, thanks for posting, overall it was a big success.

Posted by: Liam.k. 5th April 2021, 10:07 AM

QUOTE(Jay❄ @ Apr 5 2021, 03:48 AM)

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 5th April 2021, 01:25 PM

It was all handled fairly well overall and they managed to grow their success on album which was crucial for a band like them .

Posted by: Chemistry 5th April 2021, 01:42 PM

QUOTE(Feel_The_Fever @ Apr 5 2021, 01:25 PM)

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 5th April 2021, 03:41 PM

The demise of Hear Say was so quick, I didnt expect the downturn to happen so quickly. Girls Aloud def broke the mould of growing success and as you said it was rare for a band like them to have their debut album been their least successful despite it been successful in it's own right.

Posted by: Chemistry 5th April 2021, 05:23 PM

QUOTE(Feel_The_Fever @ Apr 5 2021, 03:41 PM)

Posted by: Tawdry Hepburn 6th April 2021, 09:29 AM

I don't think Hear'Say particularly cared about their craft or had the drive for sustaining a career in the same way Girls Aloud did either.

Posted by: FezVez 6th April 2021, 11:04 AM

QUOTE(Chemistry @ Apr 5 2021, 02:42 PM)

Posted by: -Jay- 29th May 2021, 08:37 AM

The debut album is 18 years old! It was released on 26th May 2003 in the UK.

Thinking back to the time of its release, I assume I was either preparing for or sitting my Year 10 exams, so the album must have been quite a distraction for me! I really loved it at the time, in a way I hadn’t truly loved a girl group album since Spice Girls releases. Even though Girls Aloud went on to release even better albums, Sound of the Underground is still special to me. I must have played No Good Advice hundreds of times, I was obsessed! Looking back, there was an amateur vibe to their styling and general presentation, but the raw potential was clearly there, despite them having only been a group for 6 months. They just had something special.

Posted by: Dill Doe 29th May 2021, 12:25 PM

They really were the second Spice Girls!

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 1st June 2021, 12:11 AM

There was such a great buzz about them back then, they were definitely that bit edgy with their first 2 singles which helped them stand out and go on to the success they had.

Posted by: -Jay- 18th August 2021, 01:52 PM

Life Got Cold was released as a single 18 years ago today!





It reached #3 in the UK. I seem to remember that this made them the first artist in UK chart history to have their first three singles peak at #1, #2 and #3 respectively!

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 18th August 2021, 02:51 PM

I always remember been so disappointed with this choice as a single, i found it a huge comedown from the previous 2 singles and its a single i have never really warmed to over the years.

Posted by: Chemistry 19th August 2021, 07:38 AM

Life Got Cold has grown on me a lot over the years, it always used to be one of my least favourites but I do like it a lot these days.

Posted by: Tawdry Hepburn 19th August 2021, 09:46 AM

I liked it at the time, I still do but it's not a red hot favourite of mine now and something I mainly go back to occasionally for the nostalgia value.

I always remember when the Radio 1 DJs kept calling it a cover of 'Wonderwall'

Posted by: PAJ 20th August 2021, 01:05 AM

I don't think I've actually ever heard Life Got Cold.

I can definitely hear the similarities with Wonderwall.

Posted by: JosephStyles 20th August 2021, 11:30 AM

I've always really liked Life Got Cold. It's lower tier in terms of their singles but that says more about their discography as a whole.

Posted by: spiceboy 20th August 2021, 01:26 PM

Life got cold is a bit of an underrated gem it's gorgeous!

Posted by: FezVez 23rd August 2021, 08:37 PM

I adored Life Got Cold (and still do) and remember the release being around the time the girls played a stadium gig in my home city. I met them there so I think that's why I have such an attachment to this single.

Posted by: LMFan 24th August 2021, 07:23 PM

life Got Cold is one of my favourite of their singles

Posted by: Run_For_Cover 10th December 2021, 12:42 AM

Just finished my first play through of this, completing my first playthrough of all 5 studio albums.

It's very solid for a debut album I enjoyed it. The singles are the obvious stand outs, minus Jump.

Some Kind Of Miracle and Girls Allowed probably my two favourite album tracks.

Posted by: -Jay- 16th December 2021, 05:33 PM

Sound of the Underground (the single) was released 19 years ago today

Posted by: spiceboy 17th December 2021, 07:35 PM

The start of an AMAZING girlband! I remember buying it in release week I bought the version that had them in the television sets, it was easily my favourite debut single by a girlband since Wannabe by the Spice Girls and it remains so to this day!

Posted by: Run_For_Cover 18th December 2021, 01:17 AM

I vaguely remember this making a minor splash in Australia at at time. I didn’t think much of it until around the time The Promise came out.

Posted by: Nina West 24th December 2021, 10:23 PM

Posted by: -Jay- 26th December 2021, 10:49 AM

White Lies is one of the better album tracks from this imo. I remember playing All I Need (All I Don't) a lot in 2003, it’s quite an earworm!

Just to be controversial, I’ve always found Some Kind of Miracle to be a tad overrated, even at the time it was new. Therefore I don’t mind that it missed out on being a single. Particularly given that I don’t think the single version mix is as good as the version on the original album!

Posted by: Lukuzz 26th March 2023, 05:59 PM

Sound Of The Underground rerelease coming apparently with unheard tracks -

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-11904191/EXC-Kimberley-Walsh-confirms-Girls-Aloud-release-new-music-TWO-MONTHS.html

Posted by: Yobnedor 26th March 2023, 06:00 PM

Apparently a SOTU reissue coming with new tracks according to Kimberley in the (cough) Daily Mail.

Posted by: -Jay- 26th March 2023, 09:06 PM

Oooh that's exciting! Ready for a vinyl

Here's the article if anyone doesn't want to click on Daily Mail. The headline amused me lol, "TWO MONTHS" - the drama!! Also this quote from Kimberley: "If you're a fan, it's fun. I'm not sure how much fun it is if you're not really into Girls Aloud."

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 27th March 2023, 12:08 AM

Oh I like the sound of this.

Posted by: schizo_spice 27th March 2023, 12:53 AM

Probably my least fave of their 5 albums but hopefully it leads to the other 4 getting new stuff.

Posted by: JosephStyles 27th March 2023, 10:33 AM

Glad they're feeling able to mark the occasion in some way! Excited to hear what's been lying around in the vaults.

Posted by: Liam.k. 27th March 2023, 11:30 AM

Very happy to hear this news, I do hope it leads to the rest of the albums getting re-released too.

We know there’s a lot of unreleased stuff from the first album as a lot of it was shelved and Xenonania were brought back in to do more songs for them.

Posted by: FezVez 27th March 2023, 07:06 PM

2 months would mark the 20th anniversary of the SOTU album release. Very exciting!

Give me the vinyls!!

Posted by: spiceboy 27th March 2023, 07:08 PM

I loved SOTU when it first came out so have a lot of fondness for it even if it is clearly their weakest album. I was obsessed with all I need (all I don’t) at the time played it non stop and boogie down love and stop (back on top) white lies too oh and some kind of miracle!

Posted by: Yobnedor 27th March 2023, 07:54 PM

Listening back, it holds up pretty well. Better than OOC anyway in my view which has some highs but some spectacular fails. SOTU is (singles aside) consistently all right!

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 30th March 2023, 12:53 AM

Some online posts are trying to be clever to get the clicks with they are returning with new music headlines, which is misleading but it might help them gain extra streams these days.

Posted by: -Jay- 31st March 2023, 01:34 AM

Looks like we’ll be finding out more later today!

Posted by: -Jay- 31st March 2023, 12:39 PM

Judging by what Kimberley said on this show, it seems like it was a case of crossed wires and she was only referring to the Sound of the Underground 7" single that's already out...

I would like to know what is holding the label back from issuing vinyl formats of the albums. If not this year, when?! It's highly overdue.

Posted by: Yobnedor 31st March 2023, 01:02 PM

QUOTE(-Jay- @ Mar 31 2023, 01:39 PM)

Judging by what Kimberley said on this show, it seems like it was a case of crossed wires and she was only referring to the Sound of the Underground 7" single that's already out...

I would like to know what is holding the label back from issuing vinyl formats of the albums. If not this year, when?! It's highly overdue.

Posted by: Liam.k. 31st March 2023, 01:49 PM

Strange because in the original article she refers to the 'Sound of the Underground' single vinyl ("'I think there's already been one re-release of Sound Of The Underground with different girls singing different lyrics, which is quite fun."). I've not listened to the show but maybe she's backpedaling and waiting for an official announcement to be made.

Posted by: -Jay- 31st March 2023, 03:14 PM

Here is what she said!

"I caused a bit of drama I think, so it's probably the right time to just like clear it up. So, I think there's been a bit of news reported that we've done like new music and stuff. We haven't, unfortunately, there's no new music, no. We just wanted to do something to mark our 20 years, you know we've obviously had a really tough year with losing Sarah, it has just been unthinkable, and so we just couldn't think of doing anything together, but for the fans we wanted to put something out there, so we've sort of... we've re-released some old music. So we've got like a different version of Sound of the Underground with different people singing different lines, just like really fun stuff just for the fans really, just to make it a bit of an event, you know, so it's fun."

Posted by: tommie 31st March 2023, 03:20 PM

^ She just says that there's no newly recorded music about to come out and doesn't exactly deny there's no re-release in the pipeline.

Posted by: -Jay- 31st March 2023, 03:36 PM

The way it reads (and also sounded) to me is that she's talking about something that's already happened i.e. "we've re-released some old music." (past tense) i.e. the 7" single release, and "we've got like a different version of Sound of the Underground with different people singing different lines" i.e. the bonus track on said 7" vinyl single.

Maybe Kimberley is just bad at being clear, but the vibe of what she said really made it seem like she was talking about something that has already happened, not something that hasn't happened yet. That does contradict the quotes from the Daily Mail though. We'll see!

Posted by: Liam.k. 31st March 2023, 03:52 PM

Basically, f*ck you Kimberley.

Posted by: spiceboy 31st March 2023, 05:48 PM

QUOTE(Yobnedor @ Mar 31 2023, 02:02 PM)

Posted by: spiceboy 31st March 2023, 05:49 PM

QUOTE(Liam.k. @ Mar 31 2023, 04:52 PM)

Basically, f*ck you Kimberley.

Posted by: Yobnedor 1st April 2023, 03:11 PM

QUOTE(spiceboy @ Mar 31 2023, 06:48 PM)

f***ing hell I choked laughing when I read this

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 1st April 2023, 06:02 PM

So does this mean there is no no new edition of their debut coming now?

Posted by: Liam.k. 1st April 2023, 09:33 PM

Their official Instagram page has just been reactivated…

Posted by: -Jay- 2nd April 2023, 04:16 AM

Oh my!!

It seems like it’s a recently set up account rather than the original one. The details of the account says: Date Joined - February 2022, Verified - January 2023 (and the follower count is only 300-ish). If their team fully deleted their previous Instagram (and Twitter) that was so silly.

Posted by: Lukuzz 2nd April 2023, 09:10 AM

FFS Kimberley !

Posted by: spiceboy 4th April 2023, 06:13 PM

Been listening to the albums again recently and I've decided SOTU is actually better than Out of control. OOC has great highs but loooow lows, while SOTU has great highs and the lows are all actually fairly good.

Posted by: Yobnedor 5th April 2023, 08:10 AM

Did you just want to copy my comment from the previous page?!

Posted by: spiceboy 5th April 2023, 09:09 AM

QUOTE(Yobnedor @ Apr 5 2023, 09:10 AM)

Posted by: -Jay- 7th April 2023, 06:58 PM

A fanmade documentary video for the Sound of the Underground era!

Posted by: -Jay- 20th April 2023, 08:05 AM

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/password

Not long now

Posted by: One_For_Sorrow 20th April 2023, 08:08 AM

Is their version of Stay Another Day available digitally anywhere?

Posted by: Yobnedor 20th April 2023, 08:52 AM

Probably the Recycling Bin

Posted by: One_For_Sorrow 20th April 2023, 09:09 AM

QUOTE(Yobnedor @ Apr 20 2023, 08:52 AM)

Posted by: spiceboy 20th April 2023, 03:08 PM

QUOTE(Yobnedor @ Apr 20 2023, 09:52 AM)

Posted by: One_For_Sorrow 20th April 2023, 09:30 PM

QUOTE(spiceboy @ Apr 20 2023, 03:08 PM)

Not even recycling, that crap aint worth it

Posted by: -Jay- 26th April 2023, 01:04 PM

Sound of the Underground (Deluxe Edition) is coming on 16th June 2023!

https://music.apple.com/nz/album/sound-of-the-underground-deluxe-edition/1681137241

Disc One
Original 15 tracks

Disc Two
Sound Of The Underground (Alternative Vocal Mix)
Jump
Girls On Film
Lights, Music, Camera, Action
On A Round
No Good Advice (Explicit)
Sacred Trust
Life Got Cold (Radio Edit)
Grease
Hopelessly Devoted To You
Some Kind Of Miracle (Single Version)
You Freak Me Out
No Good Advice (Original Demo)
Stay Another Day

Disc Three
Sound Of The Underground (Instrumental Breakdown Mix)
Girls Allowed *
Some Kind Of Miracle (Illicit Mix)
Life Got Cold (Stella Browne Vocal Mix)
No Good Advice (Dreadzone Vocal Mix)
Jump (Almighty Vocal Mix)
Sound Of The Underground (Flip & Fill Mix)
Life Got Cold (29 Palms Remix Edit)
No Good Advice (Flip & Fill Mix)
Jump (Flip & Fill Mix)
No Good Advice (Doublefunk Vocal Mix)
Girls Allowed (Almighty Vocal Mix)

* It doesn't have a tag, so it's unclear which version it is, but it might be an Edit of the Almighty Vocal Mix.

~~~~~

If I'm totally honest I'm slightly whelmed because there's nothing new here (bar the Alternative Vocal Mix from the 7" vinyl last year). Although the vast majority of the above tracks haven't been available to download or stream for a long time, so that's something at least.

There's no indication yet whether there'll be physicals.

Posted by: -Jay- 26th April 2023, 01:09 PM

https://a5.mzstatic.com/us/r1000/0/Music126/v4/fd/56/ed/fd56edd9-66d3-e0d4-efae-20f5717e46df/23UMGIM36303.rgb.jpg - extremely large artwork!

Posted by: Lukuzz 26th April 2023, 01:18 PM

Yeyyy! Cant Wait! Yes I would like more unreleased however be nice to get some of these tracks on steaming !

Posted by: Liam.k. 26th April 2023, 03:04 PM

Their version of Sacred Trust hasn’t been heard before has it? I knew they recorded it but I’ve never heard it (not that I’m particularly eager to! ).

There definitely could have been some unheard tracks on here as we know some songs from the original sessions were scrapped in favour of more Xenomania recordings, but perhaps they were just not good enough. Overall I’m happy with the collection and I hope we get physicals, even just the main tracking list on vinyl.

Posted by: -Jay- 26th April 2023, 03:32 PM

Sacred Trust was included on The Sound of Girls Aloud's bonus disc!

Praying for physicals, particularly a vinyl, although a 3CD version would be excellent too. I feel like it would be quite strange for Universal to have gone to the effort of creating a Girls Aloud store just for that 7" single? I'd like for there to be some merch too!

Posted by: tommie 26th April 2023, 03:57 PM

disgesteng flarps

Posted by: -Jay- 26th April 2023, 04:07 PM

QUOTE(tommie @ Apr 26 2023, 04:57 PM)

Posted by: FezVez 26th April 2023, 04:34 PM

It's worth it for Stay Another Day to be available on streaming at long last!

I simply don't get the hate above as I watch the TOTP performance with *that* choreo on YouTube all the time.

Posted by: Yobnedor 26th April 2023, 07:32 PM

Actually, thats not a terrible re-issue all things considered. Praying for vinyl.

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 26th April 2023, 10:20 PM

QUOTE(-Jay- @ Apr 26 2023, 04:32 PM)

Sacred Trust was included on The Sound of Girls Aloud's bonus disc!

Praying for physicals, particularly a vinyl, although a 3CD version would be excellent too. I feel like it would be quite strange for Universal to have gone to the effort of creating a Girls Aloud store just for that 7" single? I'd like for there to be some merch too!

Posted by: Liam.k. 27th April 2023, 01:51 AM

I can see Jay probably doing a big write up but looks like we are indeed getting a 3 CD and vinyl editions of the album!

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 02:03 AM

Formats

3CD

https://www.bravado.de/p51-i0602455169150/girls-aloud/sound-of-the-underground-20th-anniversary-edition-/index.html

Green Vinyl

https://www.bravado.de/p51-i0602455169099/girls-aloud/sound-of-the-underground-20th-anniversary-edition-/index.html

Picture Disc Vinyl

https://www.bravado.de/p51-i0602455169112/girls-aloud/sound-of-the-underground-20th-anniversary-edition-/index.html

They're not available in the UK yet. I wonder if there'll be any other formats, or if this is it (no cassette?).

I'll admit that I'm a little disappointed that it's a single vinyl rather than a double vinyl. That's a lot of music to cram on just two sides... Side B will be over 28 minutes long and if you go much beyond 20 or so minutes, the quality suffers. So I'm not expecting the best sounding vinyl in the world.

Otherwise I'm very happy though, it's long overdue to have a Girls Aloud album on vinyl, and the artwork looks great - looks like some previously unseen pictures are being used too! I can't wait to order!!


The 3CD track list is also a bit different to what was previewed on Apple Music! The order is more chronogical on the CD, which I prefer:

Disc 2: B-Sides & Rarities
1 Sound Of The Underground (2022 Xenomania Alternative Vocal Mix)
2 Stay Another Day (‘Sound Of The Underground’ B-side)
3 Sacred Trust (Bee Gees cover version)
4 No Good Advice (Parental Advisory Version)
5 On A Round (‘No Good Advice’ B-side)
6 No Good Advice (Original Demo)
7 Life Got Cold (Radio Edit)
8 Girls On Film (UK Bonus Track) (‘Life Got Cold’ B-side)
9 Lights, Music, Camera, Action (‘Life Got Cold’ B-side)
10 Jump (from ‘Love Actually’)
11 Grease (Beatmasters Remix) (from ‘Greasemania’)
12 Some Kind Of Miracle (New Mix from album reissue)
13 You Freak Me Out (from ‘Freaky Friday’)
14 Hopelessly Devoted To You (from ‘Greasemania’)

Disc 3: The Remixes
1 Sound Of The Underground (Instrumental Breakdown Mix)
2 Sound Of The Underground (Brian Higgins Remix)
3 Sound Of The Underground (Flip & Fill Remix)
4 No Good Advice (Dreadzone Vocal Mix)
5 No Good Advice (Doublefunk Vocal Mix)
6 No Good Advice (Flip & Fill Remix)
7 Life Got Cold (29 Palms Remix Edit)
8 Life Got Cold (Stella Browne Edit)
9 Life Got Cold (29 Palms Remix)
10 Life Got Cold (Stella Browne Vocal Mix)
11 Jump (Almighty Vocal Mix)
12 Jump (Flip & Fill Remix)
13 Girls Allowed (Almighty Radio Edit)
14 Girls Allowed (Almighty Vocal Mix)
15 Some Kind Of Miracle (Illicit Mix)

I appreciate that they've gone with the "completist" approach and included the vast majority of versions from the era. It's not everything (I'll attempt to make a list of what isn't included) but that probably would have been overkill.

"[The 3CD] also features brand-new sleeve notes based on interviews with Cheryl, Kimberley, Nadine and Nicola." - how bittersweet I just can't get used to seeing four names only.

QUOTE(Liam.k. @ Apr 27 2023, 02:51 AM)

I can see Jay probably doing a big write up but looks like we are indeed getting a 3 CD and vinyl editions of the album!

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 04:14 AM

This huge post is all about the Sound of the Underground Deluxe 3CD track list! Regarding what they've included on CD2 and CD3, as well as what they've omitted.

I'm comparing the new track list to what was included on The Singles Box Set from 2009 (the tracks on that box set were previously on the originally released singles and/or albums, of course - i.e. on commercially released CDs/Cassettes/DVD/Vinyl, and Promo CDs/Vinyl).



The following tracks are included on "Sound of the Underground Deluxe 3CD", and were also included on the "Singles Box Set":

Girls Allowed (Almighty Vocal Mix)
Girls On Film (UK Bonus Track) (‘Life Got Cold’ B-side)
Jump (Almighty Vocal Mix)
Jump (Flip & Fill Remix)
Jump (from ‘Love Actually’) [i.e. the normal single version]
Life Got Cold (29 Palms Remix) [aka "29 Palms Club Remix"]
Life Got Cold (29 Palms Remix Edit)
Life Got Cold (Radio Edit) [aka "Radio Version", 3:59 length, which was also included on Sound of the Underground re-release]
Life Got Cold (Stella Browne Edit)
Life Got Cold (Stella Browne Vocal Mix) [aka "Stella Browne Original Mix"]
Lights, Music, Camera, Action (‘Life Got Cold’ B-side)
No Good Advice (Doublefunk Vocal Mix)
No Good Advice (Dreadzone Vocal Mix)
No Good Advice (Flip & Fill Remix)
No Good Advice (Original Demo)
No Good Advice (Parental Advisory Version)
On A Round (‘No Good Advice’ B-side)
Some Kind Of Miracle (Illicit Mix)
Sound Of The Underground (Brian Higgins Remix) [aka "Remix"]
Sound Of The Underground (Flip & Fill Remix)
Sound Of The Underground (Instrumental Breakdown Mix) [aka "Extended Version for TV Appearances", from The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits bonus disc]
Stay Another Day (‘Sound Of The Underground’ B-side)


The following tracks are included on "Sound of the Underground Deluxe 3CD", but were not on the "Singles Box Set":

Girls Allowed (Almighty Radio Edit) [Never previously available on a Girls Aloud release, only on an Almighty CD-R promo]
Grease (Beatmasters Remix) (from ‘Greasemania’) [Never previously available on a Girls Aloud release, only on the Greasemania album]
Hopelessly Devoted To You (from ‘Greasemania’) [Never previously available on a Girls Aloud release, only on the Greasemania album]
Sacred Trust (Bee Gees cover version) [Previously available on The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits]
Some Kind Of Miracle (New Mix from album reissue) [Previously available on Sound of the Underground re-release]
Sound Of The Underground (2022 Xenomania Alternative Vocal Mix) [Previously available on Sound of the Underground 7" Single]
You Freak Me Out (from ‘Freaky Friday’) [Previously available on Sound of the Underground re-release]

So in terms of official Girls Aloud releases, this makes the following tracks: "Girls Allowed (Almighty Radio Edit)", "Grease (Beatmasters Remix)" & "Hopelessly Devoted To You" - exclusive to this new 3CD set, while of course this will be the first time that "Sound Of The Underground (2022 Xenomania Alternative Vocal Mix)" will be released on CD.

I still think it's a slight pity that the only kind of new song on the whole release is that SOTU Alternative Vocal Mix. It would have been nice if they had repeated that for No Good Advice, Life Got Cold and Jump!



There are some omissions. These tracks were all included on the "Singles Box Set", but are not included on "Sound of the Underground Deluxe 3CD":

Girls Aloud Interview [aka "Exclusive Interview with Girls Aloud"]
Grease
Jump (Almighty Dub)
Life Got Cold (Album Version - Edited) [aka "Album Version" on the Life Got Cold single, but it's the shortened 3:32 version - the intro is cut. To make things more complicated, this 3:32 version doesn't have quite the same production as the full-length and original album version from Sound of the Underground... and it also has a censored lyric (smoke becomes soak) - so therefore this isn't actually an Edit of that version...!]
Life Got Cold (Stella Browne Dub)
No Good Advice (Doublefunk Dub Mix)
No Good Advice (Dreadzone Dub Mix)
Stay Another Day (Karaoke Version) [aka "Instrumental"]

^ I think the most notable oversight for the 3CD Deluxe is the B Side verson of Grease! I don't mind at all that they've not included any Dub mixes.


There's some other versions that could have been used for this release, but they are mostly quite obscure, so I'm not exactly surprised that they were overlooked or not considered:

Jump (Almighty Radio Edit) - It doesn't seem like it was ever included on a Girls Aloud promo, maybe just an Almighty promo.

Life Got Cold (Promo Version) - Length is 3:47 and it's included on the Life Got Cold 1-Track Promo CD. It's essentially the Radio Version (from the re-release of Sound of the Underground) with the intro cut off.

Life Got Cold (Video Version) - This version used in the music video has never been made available otherwise. In terms of production, it's the same as "Album Version - Edited" [3:32] that I mentioned just above, however the Video Version includes the intro. So "Album Version - Edited" is actually an edit of the Video Version. Honestly, the different mixes of Life Got Cold in this era, and the tags they were given, makes it quite complicated to get your head around it!

No Good Advice - There's a different version in which Nadine sings the entirety of Verse 1 and Verse 2, and then the outro is only Nicola and Sarah - I'm not sure how this leaked!

Sound of the Underground (Without Kimberley Version) - [How savage would it have been to include this xx] - this was seemingly pressed accidentally on a particular Sound of the Underground promo CD, that was even played on radio sometimes.

Stay Another Day (Promo Version) - 3:19, making it shorter than the B Side version.

There's also shortened Performance Edits of No Good Advice (3:11) and Jump (3:32) from a promo.

Universal surely must have Instrumentals - it would have been nice to have Instrumentals for the singles, at least.

Posted by: spiceboy 27th April 2023, 05:53 AM

So getting the vinyl!!

Posted by: JosephStyles 27th April 2023, 06:11 AM

I really like how mostly comprehensive this is, particularly that it brings together both versions of the album as well as its b-sides (Grease aside but also I don't really like that song in any form so if anything had to go... x). The lack of proper new stuff is a shame but I'll still definitely be buying the 3CD album

Posted by: Liam.k. 27th April 2023, 08:01 AM

QUOTE(-Jay- @ Apr 26 2023, 04:32 PM)

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 08:30 AM

It's really strange re: Life Got Cold! The tags used for the two versions on the singles confused me for so long. :')

None of the Sound of the Underground B Sides are Xenomania (and were all snubbed on the the https://www.discogs.com/release/4695529-Girls-Aloud-The-Collection-Studio-B-Sides-Live!)

Posted by: Voodoo 27th April 2023, 08:31 AM

^ They could even release 5 bonus discs - each of the girls sings the entire album on her own.

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 09:15 AM

QUOTE(Voodoo @ Apr 27 2023, 09:31 AM)

^ They could even release 5 bonus discs - each of the girls sings the entire album on her own.

Posted by: Liam.k. 27th April 2023, 09:23 AM

QUOTE(-Jay- @ Apr 27 2023, 09:30 AM)

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 10:07 AM

^ Oh that's interesting, I hadn't read that about changes being made to the album!

Album advert:




Products on the Girls Aloud store -

Physicals:




This is one side of the double sided print, I'm assuming the other side will be the album cover:




Clothing -








I ordered the bundle of the 3 physicals including the print, and I added in the t-shirt with the girls on the front because honestly to me that image is iconic x


-----------

Links

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/sound-of-the-underground-20th-anniversary-edition-exclusive-picture-disc-lp-green-vinyl-lp-3cd-print

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/sound-of-the-underground-20th-anniversary-edition-exclusive-picture-disc-lp-3cd-no-good-advice-t-shirt-print

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/sound-of-the-underground-br-20th-anniversary-edition-exclusive-picture-disc-lp-t-shirt-bundle

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/sound-of-the-underground-br-20th-anniversary-edition-exclusive-picture-disc-lp-7-single-t-shirt-bundle

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/sound-of-the-underground-br-20th-anniversary-edition-3cd-logo-hoodie-bundle

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/sound-of-the-underground-br-20th-anniversary-edition-green-vinyl-lp-no-good-advice-t-shirt-bundle

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/sound-of-the-underground-20th-anniversary-edition-3cd

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/sound-of-the-underground-20th-anniversary-edition-exclusive-picture-disc-lp-print

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/sound-of-the-underground-20th-anniversary-edition-green-vinyl-lp-print

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/sound-of-the-underground-t-shirt

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/no-good-advice-t-shirt

https://shop.girlsaloud.com/products/logo-hoodie

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 10:50 AM

Nicola on Instagram:
To celebrate 20 years of our debut album we’re releasing it for the first time on vinyl ♥️ Included is a picture disk and 3 disc CD that includes rarities and remixes… And cute new merch 😍
Head to our website to see how stunning it all looks. #SOTU20 pre order link in @girlsaloud bio xxxxx

Nadine on Instagram:
I can’t believe that our first Girls Aloud album turns 20 years old next month. To celebrate it will be released on beautiful green vinyl and as a picture disc. PLUS – there is a new 3 CD set that includes loads of b-sides and rarities. If you’d like to pre-order a copy follow the link in the biog of the new @girlsaloud Instagram page #SOTU20 💋❤️🫶

Kimberley on Instagram:
20 years 🤯🤯🤯 Celebrating 20 years of @GirlsAloud’s debut album, Sound of the Underground⚡️ #SOTU20 Out June 16th 2023, pre-order link in the @girlsaloud bio 💿

Cheryl shared the video on her Instagram story with the caption "How has it been 20 years?! 😱😮"

Posted by: Jessie Where 27th April 2023, 11:04 AM

I do rather want that "I don't need no good advice" t-shirt!

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 11:08 AM

undiscovermusic.com article: https://www.udiscovermusic.com/news/girls-alouds-sound-underground-deluxe-reissue/

Girls Aloud’s ‘Sound Of The Underground’ Turns 20 With Deluxe Reissue
The album’s new editions features a wealth of rarities and remixes, alongside a 24-page booklet with brand-new sleeve notes and unseen photos.

Published on April 27, 2023
By Tim Peacock

To celebrate it’s 20th anniversary, Girls Aloud and Polydor/Fascination Records will be releasing a special deluxe edition of the band’s debut smash hit album Sound Of The Underground, the first in a series of exciting reissues of their studio albums.

The classic album will be released as 3CD deluxe edition featuring two bonus discs of B-sides, rarities and remixes, alongside a 24-page booklet with brand-new sleeve notes and unseen photos. The album will also be available on vinyl for the very first time on both green colored vinyl and a limited edition picture disc. The 3CD track list will also be replicated on streaming and digital on all platforms.

Fans can also today hear the first release from the album, “Sound Of The Underground (Alternative Vocal Mix),” which is available now on all streaming services. This alternative mix of the song from the archives has never been released digitally before, and see the band members singing different lines of the iconic song to the original. Last year a limited edition 7″ vinyl release of the song was released, with this alternative version as the B-side to raise funds for The Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal.

After beating their Popstars: The Rivals competitors to the Christmas Number 1 in December 2002, Girls Aloud’s “Sound Of The Underground” single went on to spend four weeks at the top of the chart and heralded in a run of 21 magnificent chart smashes that defined a decade in pop.

Remembering the creation of the Sound Of The Underground album Nadine recalls, “The aim was to bring in as much creativity as possible and make something as strong as the single “Sound of the Underground.”

The album’s undeniable spine is its six tracks produced by Brian Higgins and the Xenomania collective. Girls Aloud arrived to the recording sessions to find a small army of songwriters concocting hooks, lyrics and rhythm tracks in every room, which Higgins would later piece together into sparkling and surprising pop songs. A vital part of the process was the wide-ranging conversations he would have with individual band members.

“I would sit down with Brian and he’d say something like, ‘OK, so you’re a 17-year-old girl from Northern Ireland, now living in London.’ What’s going on in your life?’” Nadine recalls. “Those chats were really important because they helped to drive our musical direction and make our songs genuine.”

The bolshy stomper “No Good Advice” was then released in May 2003 as Girls Aloud’s second single and debuted at number two. Much as they had done with “Sound of the Underground,” the band turned the song’s lyrics into a formidable statement of intent. “But I dig the music that I’m making, baby, and I’ll break it into your brain,” Nadine sings on the second verse. “No Good Advice” has gone down in history as a Girls Aloud classic and a band favourite, but this doesn’t mean every band member is enamored with the music video.

“It was a 24-hour shoot from 6am to 6am the next morning, and I had a trouser rip situation that had to be gaffa-taped shut!” Cheryl says.

The original version of the track included lyrics that needed to be censored to ensure radio play – the original uncensored version appears on the deluxe 3CD set. Higgins and Xenomania also produced “Life Got Cold,” the album’s wistful third single which became Girls Aloud’s third consecutive top three hit when it was released in August 2003.

However, what came next was arguably even more important. When the Sound of the Underground album was reissued that November, it included a fourth hit, a rollicking cover of the Pointer Sisters’ “Jump” recorded for the soundtrack to British rom-com movie Love Actually.

“It was a make-or-break song for us as a band,” Kimberley says, explaining that its success persuaded their record label to invest in a second Girls Aloud album.. “‘Jump” saved our career,” Nicola states. “It was four on the floor so it could be played in the clubs, but it was also familiar enough to be played on the radio. And at this point, it was probably our most digestible single.” The song remains one of the band’s most-streamed songs of all time.

In October last year Cheryl, Kimberley, Nadine and Nicola held The Primrose Ball, a charity gala event for The Christie NHS Foundation Trust and Cancer Research UK, as part of The Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal. Hosted by Cheryl, Kimberley, Nadine and Nicola, and presented by Fearne Cotton, the evening saw performances by Olly Alexander, Ricky Wilson (Kaiser Chiefs) and Will Young, with a live auction including an original canvas depicting Sarah Harding by The Connor Brothers. More recently, a limited edition 7” vinyl release
of the band’s debut single “Sound Of The Underground” was released, also to raise funds for The Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal. The single was backed with a never-before-released alternative vocal version of the song from the archives which now appears on the new 3CD set of the new album reissue.

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 12:50 PM

The CD2 and CD3 track lists have been updated to reflect what shows on Apple Music:

CD2: B-Sides And Rarities
1. Sound Of The Underground (Alternative Vocal Mix)
2. Jump (From “Love Actually”)
3. Girls On Film
4. Lights, Music, Camera, Action
5. On A Round
6. No Good Advice (Parental Advisory Version)
7. Sacred Trust
8. Life Got Cold (Radio Edit)
9. Grease (From “Greasemania”)
10. Hopelessly Devoted To You (From “Greasemania”)
11. Some Kind Of Miracle (New Mix)
12. You Freak Me Out (From “Freaky Friday”)
13. No Good Advice (Original Demo)
14. Stay Another Day

CD 3: The Remixes
1. Sound Of The Underground (Instrumental Breakdown Mix)
2. Girls Allowed (Almighty Radio Edit)
3. Some Kind Of Miracle (Illicit Mix)
4. Life Got Cold (Stella Browne Vocal Mix)
5. No Good Advice (Dreadzone Vocal Mix)
6. Jump (Almighty Vocal Mix)
7. Sound Of The Underground (Flip & Fill Remix)
8. Life Got Cold (29 Palms Remix Edit)
9. No Good Advice (Flip & Fill Remix)
10. Jump (Flip & Fill Remix)
11. No Good Advice (Doublefunk Vocal Mix)
12. Girls Allowed (Almighty Vocal Mix)

I'm ever so slightly disappointed with that because I did like the chronological order. On the other hand I can understand why they'd want Jump to feature more prominently on CD2, as track 2 rather than track 10, for instance.

The main curiosity is that CD3 has bumped off three of the remixes that bravado.de initially listed:

Sound Of The Underground (Brian Higgins Remix)
Life Got Cold (Stella Browne Edit)
Life Got Cold (29 Palms Remix)

I suppose the Life Got Cold remixes are no great loss because there's already the Stella Browne Vocal Mix and 29 Palms Remix Edit versions anyway. Omitting the SOTU Brian Higgins remix is a shame though, it's one of their best mixes, so that's a bit

Posted by: Lukuzz 27th April 2023, 01:30 PM

Arghhh dunno what to get !

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 01:43 PM

QUOTE(Lukuzz @ Apr 27 2023, 02:30 PM)

Posted by: Aaron. 27th April 2023, 02:00 PM

For whatever reason all of the bundles are unavailable for me, it just directs me to buy each product individually.
I picked up the CD Set, the Girls Aloud T-Shirt and the Hoodie.
I’ll likely pick up the NGA T-Shirt when I order the Vinyls. So exciting!

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 02:05 PM

I know I'm posting a lot today but I've noticed that they've updated their Spotify page's banner to the album cover! On the desktop version at least. It's still showing the Out of Control era picture on my phone.

Their YouTube page has a default picture and banner for the first time - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDHgzFz9vVUjk5YOU4lwa2g - I'm glad their team is making the effort to update things across their social media etc.

Also Liam mentioned this earlier but the SOTU era videos all have new default YouTube pictures now, although NGA/LGC/Jump are not 4K yet. Chris Fox teased with an "👀" response at someone who asked whether 4K versions of those are coming!









Farewell to the previous default pictures:

Posted by: inyourroom 27th April 2023, 02:15 PM

QUOTE(Aaron. @ Apr 27 2023, 04:00 PM)

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 02:25 PM

Apparently US customers can buy from here, but the picture disc isn't here: https://townsendmusic.store/products/artist/Girls+Aloud

Posted by: Aaron. 27th April 2023, 02:39 PM

QUOTE(inyourroom @ Apr 27 2023, 03:15 PM)

QUOTE(-Jay- @ Apr 27 2023, 03:25 PM)

Posted by: Willm 27th April 2023, 03:44 PM

I'm excited to see where this charts, wouldn't surprise me if more was to come like hmv exclusive etc

Posted by: -Jay- 27th April 2023, 05:09 PM

QUOTE(Willm @ Apr 27 2023, 04:44 PM)

Posted by: Jade 27th April 2023, 05:43 PM

Just ordered the green vinyl as a payday treat 🥰

So happy that their catalogue is coming to vinyl. Tangled Up has been one of my biggest hopes on this format for years.

Posted by: Maz! 27th April 2023, 06:02 PM

Ordered the 3CD and No Good Advice shirt.

Posted by: Last Dreamer 27th April 2023, 06:17 PM

QUOTE(-Jay- @ Apr 27 2023, 05:05 PM)

Posted by: Aaron. 27th April 2023, 07:06 PM

Posted by: JosephStyles 27th April 2023, 07:45 PM

I can't buy anything until tomorrow but I definitely need the 3CD, also strongly leaning towards the vinyl + picture t-shirt bundle (to also get the print with it!). Long needed a GA t-shirt!

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 27th April 2023, 10:31 PM

Now this is the news we were waiting for.

Posted by: -Jay- 28th April 2023, 03:54 AM

QUOTE(Last Dreamer @ Apr 27 2023, 07:17 PM)

There are many videos in low quality on their channel.
"Sexy! No No No" is only 360p, my favourite "Can't Speak French" is 480p e.t.c.

Posted by: -Jay- 28th April 2023, 08:53 AM

Green Vinyl is currently #8 on Amazon UK! #2 in their Vinyl chart, behind Wham!'s "The Singles: Echoes From the Edge of Heaven".

3CD format is also #26 on Amazon UK.

Here's a detail I hadn't previously seen: "The CD format also features extensive sleeve notes by respected pop journalist Nick Levine."

Posted by: Liam.k. 28th April 2023, 09:22 AM

QUOTE(-Jay- @ Apr 27 2023, 03:05 PM)

Posted by: -Jay- 28th April 2023, 09:55 AM

^ I bet they will! I feel like Chris Fox should realise that it shouldn't cut off at that point. (Watch me jinx this x)

Speaking of short videos (and this is going off topic!) but I still can't believe that Sugababes - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvoAvPjADsE and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3kmW-xBdqw official uploads haven't been fixed after all these years!

Posted by: Liam.k. 28th April 2023, 10:46 AM

Yeah it’s a real problem on the Sugababes channel! I think ‘Red Dress’ has the same issue too. I always favour https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4TV6VIJPzAmroRmSvJNvtLvyXFE-r7O7 for when I want to watch Sugababes videos.

Posted by: J00prstar 28th April 2023, 01:47 PM

I don't really like the new release. 'Alternate vocal' is a nice way of saying what sounds like a demo

Posted by: JosephStyles 28th April 2023, 05:43 PM

Posted by: -Jay- 29th April 2023, 05:58 AM

Nuhdeen continues to be an icon


A few articles about the album reissue, alternate vocal version or Sound of the Underground video:

Grazia Daily: Every Look From Girls Aloud's Sound Of The Underground We Owned, Dissected https://graziadaily.co.uk/celebrity/style/every-look-from-girls-alouds-sound-of-the-underground-we-owned-dissected/
NME: Girls Aloud announce 'Sound Of The Underground' 20th anniversary reissue https://www.nme.com/news/music/girls-aloud-announce-sound-of-the-underground-20th-anniversary-reissue-3436587
Official Charts: Girls Aloud announce brand-new version of Sound of the Underground https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/girls-aloud-sound-of-the-underground-deluxe-edition-20th-anniversary-album-re-release-tracklist-formats-and-more__39082/
Planet Radio: Girls Aloud celebrate their 20th anniversary with new versions of songs https://planetradio.co.uk/hits-radio/entertainment/music/girls-aloud-20th-anniversary/
Retro Pop Magazine: Girls Aloud share Sound Of The Underground (Alternate Vocal Mix) https://retropopmagazine.com/girls-aloud-share-sound-of-the-underground-alternate-vocal-mix/

Posted by: Silas 1st May 2023, 10:36 AM

I ordered the 7“ single (because of the charity donation) and the green disc. I’m not a massive fan of GA albums, for me they’re very much a singles artist, but I want Universal to see the benefit of releasing girlband albums on vinyl so I’m supporting the cause (and I wanna be able to throw down to No Good Advice)

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 1st May 2023, 12:39 PM

Fans really want the vinyls so hopefully this is the start of all their albums getting a vinyl release. There is a good chance the album could return to the top 10 with it getting a cd and vinyl release. Interesting to see how/if the Girls promote this release.

Posted by: JosephStyles 6th May 2023, 10:37 AM

Ended up buying the 3CD and the group photo t-shirt/vinyl bundle can't wait to put the vinyl up on my wall to display!

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 6th May 2023, 07:35 PM

Vinyls make brilliant Wall displays.

Posted by: -Jay- 7th May 2023, 05:42 PM

I still wish it was a double vinyl though

Still a little surprised that there isn’t a cassette for some easy extra sales as part of bundles!

Posted by: JosephStyles 7th May 2023, 05:50 PM

Would easily snap up a cassette if they added one!

Posted by: -Jay- 9th May 2023, 12:45 PM

The green vinyl has sold out on their official store! Still available elsewhere, but hopefully it selling out on the store is a good sign that they’re selling better than expected?

Posted by: -Jay- 9th May 2023, 03:28 PM

Incredibly random observation, regarding Pointer Sisters and Girls Aloud's versions of Jump:

More time has passed since Girls Aloud charted with Jump, than the length of time between The Pointer Sisters' original release and Girls Aloud's!

Pointer Sisters version entered the UK chart at #24 on 17th June 1984, while Girls Aloud went to #2 on 23rd November 2003. That's a gap of 19 years, 5 months, 6 days.

It's been 19 years, 5 months, 16 days since Girls Aloud's version entered the chart!


(However, I should point out that Pointer Sisters' Jump was first released as part of their album in November 1983 - so Jump isn't yet quite as old overall as Pointer Sisters version was back in November 2003 - there's a 20 years and 11 days gap between those releases).

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 9th May 2023, 06:01 PM

Nice stats. I still prefer Girls Aloud version.

Posted by: -Jay- 19th May 2023, 10:02 AM

If you play Sound of the Underground, No Good Advice, Life Got Cold and Jump on Spotify (on your phone or tablet), they have canvases now! (Short looped visuals). Each one shows a few clips of the music videos as if they're being played on a TV. Cute!

Posted by: Liam.k. 19th May 2023, 10:09 AM

Not showing up for me yet!

Posted by: -Jay- 21st May 2023, 12:13 AM

The next release will be No Good Advice (Flip & Fill Remix) on 2nd June, according to andru on Popjustice!

I'm guessing that is when we could expect the music video remaster... maybe a remix video as well, with previously unseen footage? (No idea, just speculating!)

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 21st May 2023, 03:29 AM

It would be great if all that happens and might help it improve on streaming for a dew weeks if nothing else.

Posted by: -Jay- 25th May 2023, 03:15 PM

View this post on Instagram

Posted by: -Jay- 26th May 2023, 07:08 PM

20 years ago on this date, 26th May, Girls Aloud released their debut album Sound of the Underground!

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 26th May 2023, 07:16 PM

What a rollercoaster 20 years it has been since this album hit the shelves, its incredibly sad that Sarah is no longer here to celebrate such a big milestone.

Posted by: -Jay- 27th May 2023, 09:39 AM

QUOTE(Feel_The_Fever @ May 26 2023, 08:16 PM)

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 28th May 2023, 03:01 PM

It really is tinged with sadness. But i do think they are approaching the milestone in the right wa, it just feels very right for them at this time.

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 29th May 2023, 11:14 AM

I wonder how pre orders are going for the album, hopefully it is building well.

Posted by: -Jay- 31st May 2023, 04:32 PM

QUOTE(-Jay- @ May 19 2023, 11:02 AM)

View this post on Instagram

Posted by: Nina West 2nd June 2023, 01:11 PM

I will be doing a track by track review for this album over the weekend, so stay tuned

Posted by: -Jay- 3rd June 2023, 02:29 PM

With very little fanfare, the Flip & Fill remix of No Good Advice is now available!

No sign of No Good Advice video remaster


Love these throwbacks regarding how this era was promoted!

View this post on Instagram

Posted by: -Jay- 10th June 2023, 03:59 AM

Kimberley with the picture disc! - https://www.instagram.com/p/CtR2rKyrLf3


Just one week to go until the release of the Sound of the Underground 20th anniversary editions! This picture disc is so fab I love it 😍 Who’s ordered a copy? There’s lots of fun stuff in the @girlsaloud store if you wanna check it out…link in my biog! ❤️

Posted by: -Jay- 15th June 2023, 12:27 AM

Posted by: spiceboy 15th June 2023, 07:08 AM

That is gorge, still need to buy my copy!

Posted by: -Jay- 15th June 2023, 10:47 AM

Cannot wait for my copies to arrive My bundle order hasn't dispatched from their official store yet but hopefully later today... not holding my breath that I'll have it tomorrow. I'm curious to see what the CD format will look like (Hardbook cover? Digipak? Plastic case?).

Posted by: inyourroom 15th June 2023, 01:36 PM

A quick observation before release day:
Although the song Grease is listed as Beatmasters Remix / From "Greasemania", Qobuz lists the track length as 3:27, which is the single version, not the remix. We'll know tomorrow.

Posted by: -Jay- 15th June 2023, 02:00 PM

Oh that's weird that they've mixed up the versions! iTunes in New Zealand also has the 3:27 version.

I was actually looking forward to it being the Beatmasters Remix because I only have a 128kbps version of it

Posted by: -Jay- 15th June 2023, 02:21 PM

On Disc 2, the 3:29 version of Life Got Cold, they've credited it as "Radio Edit". This is technically incorrect... the 3:29 version was called "Album Version" on the CD singles (also a weird tag, admittedly) but then in the digital era it was given a credit that made more sense: "Album Version (Edited)" - https://open.spotify.com/album/0JhSJVwJgCsM7g78c3v0Ea?si=vOxtQM7sTn29ROynLQRX9w

The Radio Edit from the Life Got Cold CD single is actually the 3:58 version, which went on to be included on the re-release of Sound of the Underground, and is also known as Radio Version!

Posted by: JosephStyles 15th June 2023, 08:11 PM

Nothing confuses me more than the Life Got Cold versions x

Posted by: Padamic Tension 16th June 2023, 12:37 AM

Well release day is upon us, really hope this does well for them, id like to see the girls promote it to even if they all do it solo, lets stream where we can as an additional support, not really sure what to expect for this release in Ireland or if it will do anything at all here.

Posted by: -Jay- 16th June 2023, 04:23 AM

My order from the official store is still "unfulfilled" on release day



'Grease' is definitely just the original B Side version, not Beatmasters Remix... the mistag is a bit annoying.

The explicit 'No Good Advice' hasn't been given its own tag, it just shows the Explicit symbol.

'Girls Allowed - Almighty Radio Edit' hasn't been properly tagged, it's just there as "Girls Allowed".

'Jump' has been given the tag 'Jump - From "Love Actually"'. Will be interesting to see if that helps out its streams over time, particularly nearer Christmas. Similarly 'You Freak Me Out' has been given the tag 'You Freak Me Out - From "Freaky Friday"'.

'Girls on Film' is 'Girls on Film - UK Bonus Track' which is an ugly tag x

Posted by: Yobnedor 16th June 2023, 06:26 AM

Thank god for Last.fm premium features!

Also, same re: official store. Homophobia in action.

Posted by: -Jay- 16th June 2023, 12:18 PM

Still no sign of dispatch from their official store

Posted by: Yobnedor 16th June 2023, 01:18 PM

Mine has now been dispatched.

Posted by: gooddelta 16th June 2023, 09:02 PM

I got this delivered from Amazon today, been enjoying listening to it again, it was their weakest album for me but still good and brings back a lot of memories.

I had a frightening realisation that I bought the album as I started my first job, which reminded me it was 20 years ago this month that I started that, argh

For some reason it was Forever And A Night that particularly brought the memories flooding back, I think I recall listening to it in the work canteen back in the day.

Posted by: -Jay- 17th June 2023, 07:58 AM

I’m so gutted that my order wasn’t dispatched. I really wanted to enjoy it over the weekend. Also I’m confused that it hasn’t been dispatched considering that the store has certainly dispatched many other peoples. So I’ve got to wait until Monday at the earliest now, feel like there’s no point in contacting the store until I see if it does dispatch on Monday.

Posted by: ThePensmith 17th June 2023, 10:44 AM

My bundle was dispatched late afternoon yesterday. But I've now got to wait until Monday cause no one answered the door for it to be delivered today. I am a bit pissed off, yes 😤

Progress, much (not). I'm the same as you Jay, I wanted to enjoy mine this weekend especially cause I've got a busy full on day on Monday.

Posted by: gooddelta 17th June 2023, 11:15 AM

Sacred Trust to me is very marginally better as a Girls Aloud song but naff is still the word I'd use to describe it. Not awful, but super cheesy and the production on it, for late 2002, sounds so dated - imagine if they'd launched their career with this.

Also it seems to position Nadine as a lead singer, which wouldn't have been a good idea for their dynamic, even in many ways she sort of was a psuedo-lead singer by having a lot of the major lines and ad libs on many of their songs.

On the flipside, it also makes me wonder how far One True Voice could have gone with better music than they were handed (and a better name - even OTV would abbreviated would have been better).

Posted by: tommie 17th June 2023, 11:42 AM

Wow not me being right about there being a re-release when everyone doubted it would happen, file this under "no one listens to tommie when they should listen to tommie" x

QUOTE(tommie @ Mar 31 2023, 03:20 PM)

Posted by: gooddelta 17th June 2023, 11:46 AM

A couple of other thoughts:

- I know it's also a bit of a basic cover, but I'm glad to see Stay Another Day finally on streaming as I can finally fill a gap in my 2002 playlist!

- Some Kind Of Miracle is such a strong track, I know it was ditched as a single because Jump came along but it could have made a great summer double a-side with Life Got Cold!

Or even: March 2003, No Good Advice; June 2003 Life Got Cold; late August/early September Some Kind of Miracle; November Jump.

Posted by: -Jay- 17th June 2023, 12:11 PM

^ This makes me wonder if No Good Advice might have done a little better than it did, if they'd been ready to strike with it in March rather than in May? At the time I do remember feeling increasingly impatient to find out what their next move was going to be. They went pretty quiet in Jan/Feb/Mar 2003. A lot of artists wouldn't leave it longer than 3 months between singles, so maybe 5 was a bit too long? (I wonder things that can't be answered x).

Yeah, One True Voice were truly doomed at the start by having Sacred Trust. Even taking it as a stand along song without comparing it to Girls Aloud, it felt dated and unexciting - so in direct comparison to Sound of the Underground, its datedness was even more amplified! Their image, the band name... it was just all wrong. Clearly they were talented guys, but it didn't click - the vision just wasn't there.

I wonder how far in advance of the Popstars final (30th November 2002) that Polydor discovered Sound of the Underground and decided it was the perfect song to use? It will always amaze me that they had the foresight to find an exciting uptempo track for the girls. They really could have been lazier and found something they "safe" (bland). Thank goodness it happened the way it did, and that it the relationship with Xenomania was in place from the very beginning. I also don't understand why The X Factor never looked at the Sound of the Underground as a blueprint for winners singles. 9 years later and Little Mix were lumbered with Cannonball.

Posted by: spiceboy 17th June 2023, 04:37 PM

Even Girls Aloud can't save that dreadful Sacred Trust song! One True Voice really had no chance, their follow up was equally as terrible!

I am also with you on that terrible Cannonball choice for Little Mix wtf? At least they redeemed that with Wings which was the perfect song to come back with!

Posted by: Voodoo 17th June 2023, 06:15 PM

I must have missed something. Why did they record Sacred Trust if it was a OTV single?

Posted by: tommie 17th June 2023, 06:38 PM

QUOTE(Voodoo @ Jun 17 2023, 06:15 PM)

I must have missed something. Why did they record Sacred Trust if it was a OTV single?

Posted by: Padamic Tension 18th June 2023, 10:17 AM

QUOTE(spiceboy @ Jun 17 2023, 05:37 PM)

Posted by: Yobnedor 18th June 2023, 11:17 AM

Wasn’t Sacred Trust originally the winners song for both acts? And then the Aloud’s team found SOTU pretty late on (compared to ST) and then had all ten girls record parts for it, wiping off each girl as they got eliminated?

Posted by: ___∆___ 18th June 2023, 02:14 PM

QUOTE(Yobnedor @ Jun 18 2023, 12:17 PM)

Posted by: -Jay- 18th June 2023, 03:09 PM

Posted by: -Jay- 18th June 2023, 03:19 PM

Posted by: -Jay- 18th June 2023, 03:47 PM

Have to say I'm quite surprised and impressed with how the Sound of the Underground vinyl pressing sounds, considering how much music is on each side! Can't detect anything sounding imperfect about it.

I also really like the design of the vinyl packaging, it's not just a sleeve for the vinyl, but also a folded booklet with unseen pictures and the lyrics inlay. It's really nice!

This is a copy I ordered from Amazon yesterday by the way. I ordered it and the CD from there! I just couldn't wait for the store, and I don't mind eventually having two of each. I'll keep the store copies sealed.

Love the packaging for the CD too. I'm really happy with these releases.

Posted by: JosephStyles 18th June 2023, 08:11 PM

Mine still hasn't been dispatched

Posted by: -Jay- 19th June 2023, 12:09 PM

QUOTE(JosephStyles @ Jun 18 2023, 09:11 PM)

Mine still hasn't been dispatched

Posted by: ___∆___ 19th June 2023, 01:26 PM

^^ Really strong start considering so many people haven’t had their orders shipped yet (I’ve seen a few people mention it on insta too).

Posted by: -Jay- 19th June 2023, 04:06 PM

QUOTE(___∆___ @ Jun 19 2023, 02:26 PM)

Posted by: Lukuzz 19th June 2023, 07:16 PM

Mines been dispatched today too

Posted by: Jade 19th June 2023, 07:28 PM

Mine arrived yesterday! Here's hoping there'll be an impactful sales jump from store orders as I'd love to see them comfortably back in the chart

Posted by: Padamic Tension 19th June 2023, 08:04 PM

Hopefully the late dispatches will help keep the ship steady and there is still a good few orders to be dispatched,

Posted by: ___∆___ 20th June 2023, 10:29 AM

Hopefully we get an update today and the late shipments have given it a boost (I cancelled my store order and got it from Amazon when they started messing about with dispatching them).

Posted by: JosephStyles 20th June 2023, 06:47 PM

My stuff came today, feels so good having a GA t-shirt!!

Posted by: Padamic Tension 20th June 2023, 08:48 PM

Hopefully its still at least top 15 in tomorrows update.

Posted by: Padamic Tension 23rd June 2023, 05:39 PM

So number 42 in the end in the UK but it isn't top 100 here in Ireland this week. Great to see it chart again in the UK but if I'm honest I'd hoped it woukd be higher and stayed top 40.

Posted by: Voodoo 24th June 2023, 04:28 PM

Just noticed that SOTU - Alternative Vocal Mix has the same number of streams as the original version on Spotify. What gives?

Posted by: -Jay- 24th June 2023, 05:05 PM

Hmm these combination of streams can happen sometimes, not sure why, potentially the label requests it? Or Spotify's program (or whatever x) decides that the songs aren't different to each other and combines them It's like 2 Become 1 album version and single version being combined. SOTU alternative vocal mix did start out separated though. Maybe they'll uncombine at some point.

Edit: Just checked spotontrack and the combination happened on 3rd June! The day before that, alternative vocal mix had 59,934 streams.

Posted by: Liam.k. 11th July 2023, 02:36 PM

Posted by: -Jay- 13th July 2023, 01:33 AM

^ I hope so too! More No Good Advice teasing:

View this post on Instagram

Posted by: Nina West 13th July 2023, 01:12 PM

Here's my track by track review of Girls Aloud's debut album Sound of the Underground. (I've only done the original 15 tracks & not the bonus re-release tracks).


01. Sound of the Underground - 10/10
The album kicks off with an almighty bang with the debut single that would not only perfectly set the tone for what’s to come but would put the girls firmly on the map with something cool, edgy and innovative. From its opening surf guitar hooks, pulsating beats and well-crafted hooks that builds that perfect amount of intensity that explodes during the chorus. The song is simply excellent and set a new example of what a winner’s single could be. To date no other reality show winning single has ever sound this good.

02. No Good Advice - 10/10
The 2nd single comes next and feels like a natural successor to their debut single and does more than enough to validate itself as a worthy follow-up with a brassy and more in your face attitude with its grinding electric guitar riffs, simple catchy beats that builds nicely towards that mammoth chorus. This is an awesome track that ranks amongst the girls very best.

03. Some Kind of Miracle - 8/10
The album takes a slightly slower pace with this breezy little pop number with jangly guitar riffs set against psychedelic beats and plodding basslines. The girls show some really good vocals on here as they glide between feisty and breathy with ease. Not as dynamic as the first 2 tracks but this is a nice solid little pop number and the fact that it kept getting passed over for a single release showed that it just simply wasn’t meant to be. I am of course referring to the original album version and not single mix on the re-release.

04. All I Need (All I Don’t) - 7/10
One of the more experimental sounding tracks on here with its squelchy techno sounds laden with grinding synths with some disco/funk thrown into the mix. This allows the girls to show off some cool sultry vocal harmonies. A decent track but lacks the energy of the previous songs.

05. Life Got Cold - 9/10
The album’s first ballad and got later got chosen as the girl’s 3rd single. This is a beautiful and mellow pop ballad that showed a different and more heartfelt side to the girls and made for a brilliant single choice. The Spanish styled guitars gives the production a wonderful warm and rich sound and the vocals deliveries are also top notch and really shows how diverse they can be.

06. Mars Attacks - 6/10
A fun and quirky little pop song with a catchy chorus with some interesting production moments such as the oddly structured verses and the frantic energy. But the song does feel like too much of a retread of their debut single ‘Sound of the Underground’ only nowhere near as good.

07. Stop - 6/10
Another catchy little number with some nice guitars and bass sounds that ushers in the vocals before the rock/punk beats drops. This is an okay track but doesn’t really stand out.

08. Girls Allowed - 8/10
I bet they thought they were clever with this title, but it’s a wonderfully catchy little pop song with some great vocal harmonies in the chorus and some cool bass synths. A solid album track.

09. Forever and a Night - 5/10
A slushy typical girl-group ballad which opens with acoustic guitars before the shuffling beats and bleeping synths comes in along with the big vocal harmonies during the chorus. This perhaps feels a little too generic and boring to really stand out.

10. Love/Hate - 8/10
Picking things up with a funky up-beat tempo along with some fun garage beats and quickfire vocals that’s surrounded by guitars and synth pads. The chorus is light and fun with some interesting production moments. A solid effort.

11. Boogie Down Love - 7/10
This is another fun and up-beat little number loaded with roaring guitars, chime bars and fun vocal effects. I like the chaotic energy of this track and plus its catchy as hell.

12. Don’t Want You Back - 6/10
This is yet another nice catchy track with some guitars and vocal harmonies, but this feels way too generic and faceless, as if it could have been sung by anyone.

13. White Lies - 7/10
This is a solid album closer (to the standard edition) with nice guitar riffs, simple beats and a soaring melody where the girls get to inject their personality into the chorus.

14. Love Bomb - 6/10
A fun little bop written by Betty Boo and it shows as it bears similarities to her songs. The fast paced vocals are fun, the song’s quite catchy and the production has some fun moments, but yeah this is b-side material at best.

15. Everything You Wanted - 4/10
Again another track that wasn’t needed here and can see why this was left off the re-release. The song itself is very forgettable and doesn’t really go anywhere interesting. This has demo written all over it.

Posted by: KM AIR 13th July 2023, 03:14 PM

All I need, All I don't is a rework from Holly Valance's track "everything I hate"

Posted by: Jessie Where 13th July 2023, 03:40 PM

QUOTE(KM AIR @ Jul 13 2023, 04:14 PM)

Posted by: ThePensmith 13th July 2023, 04:51 PM

Full digital single package for "Sound Of The Underground" is out tomorrow - including the interview from CD2, the Brian Higgins Remix that wasn't on the deluxe CD and the instrumental of "Stay Another Day".

Hopefully Fascination have got the other singles planned as they did with The Saturdays and Appleton!

Posted by: -Jay- 14th July 2023, 02:40 AM

That’s a lovely surprise! 🤩 Definitely keeping my fingers crossed that they’re endeavouring to do this with every single. I’ve yearned for their digital presence to be tidier than it is for many years!

Posted by: Liam.k. 14th July 2023, 02:02 PM

Doesn’t appear as a new release, it’s release date is set as 2002 and you have to scroll to the bottom of their ‘Singles’ section to find it on their page.

Posted by: ThePensmith 14th July 2023, 11:57 PM

It was quite amusing hearing that interview again. Especially with how thick Cheryl and Nadine's accents were back then - and Nicola's a bit as well!

Posted by: pippa 17th July 2023, 02:39 PM

Nadine's accent is at times very difficult to understand.

Posted by: -Jay- 8th March 2024, 03:07 AM

Not all that interesting, but I've only just noticed that on Disc 3, Track 4 - what is tagged as 'Life Got Cold (Stella Browne Vocal Mix)' is actually the '(Stella Browne Dub)'.

Also, I'm not sure if this was previously pointed out, but on Disc 3, Track 11 - 'No Good Advice (Doublefunk Vocal Mix)' is stated as being the explicit version (on Spotify) but it's actually the censored version!

Posted by: One_For_Sorrow 24th April 2024, 09:09 AM

Listening to the standard edition of this for either the first or second time.