Tim: So I know this song’s been out a few weeks now, but, well, I want to chat. Press play.
Tim: See, right now, we’ve pretty much a complete and total lack of boybands. That’s not definitively a bad thing, but none of the various hiatuses seem to be coming to an end, Westlife are touring this summer but giving no indication of any new music happening, the new 5SOS track is rubbish and, well, I like a good boyband track, you know? And The 1975, until now, have entirely not fitted the mould.
Tom: I kept seeing this in my recommendations on YouTube, and yet I don’t watch it, because it’s the 1975. I know what they sound like. And this… is not what I expected.
Tim: You look them up on Wikipedia, they’re ‘pop rock’ or ‘alternative rock’; they’re front and centre on Radio 1’s playlist; they do their own instruments and everything. This, though – well, I woke up the other morning and I thought “why are Radio 1 playing a new Busted track?” Because let’s face it, that’s what this is.
Tom: Hmm. There’s certainly a bit of that, but it’s not all the way there. The vocal mix here is so muddy: I have to assume that’s deliberate, because no competent pop producer would ever put out something like this, where it sounds a bit like he’s singing into a cardboard box. It’s like if Busted took some downers and weren’t quite as catchy.
Tim: I don’t know if they’d be happy or not with the comparison, but melodically, vocally, stylistically, this has Busted written all over it. And given that actual Busted haven’t given us anything since last year’s reunion album Half Way There, I’ll absolutely take this.