Mathilda – NBLY&I

“The lyrics are a bit bland, the sound is derivative, but it is a bloody brilliant pop song.”

Tim: The letters in the title are short for ‘Nothing Burns Like You & I’; don’t know why it had to be shortened, but in the absence of any official guidance I propose we pronounce it ‘nibbly’.

Tom: I went “ugh” twice in the opening two lines: first, the line “da hood”; second, rhyming it with school. Weirdly, the vertical video didn’t annoy me at all, so at least there’s that.

Tim: Huh, that does genuinely surprise me. But overall, that there is a bloody brilliant pop song. It is Miley’s Party In The USA, it is Demi’s Heart Attack, it is Avril’s Rock N Roll, all rolled into one with a bunch of other tracks and sounding fantastic.

Tom: I was all ready to disagree with you (particularly with that pre-chorus “panic attack” line), but I have to admit there are some lovely bits in here.

Tim: We seem to have had a bit of a break from female pop-rock recently, and hearing tracks like this makes me realise just what a damn shame that is. It might not be the best song around – lyrics are a bit bland, the sound however great, is entirely derivative, and it won’t go down in history as a classic…

Tom: Thanks, you took the words right out of my mouth.

Tim: …but it is a bloody brilliant pop song. And I love it.