After the rise and rise of the likes of Beyoncé, Sugababes and Justin Timberlake, most of us were highly optimistic that the pop game had been sufficiently raised, and that the days of formulaic boyband-type pop drudgery and mediocrity were well and truly numbered. Some of us were so prematurely confident, that we began to tune back into daytime radio, hopeful that the ambushes of truly uninspiring ballads would be few and far between. Alas, the pop-lite monster is still alive and roaming the airwaves…this time he’s in a suit and sneakers.
Most of the ‘songs’ on Stronger Together sound as though they could have been written on the back of a stamp (hastily, on the tube on the way to the A&R meetings at Universal). Always the litmus test of a forgettable track, many of the songs have been passed through the hands (and seemingly vacuous cranial cavities) of no less than five writers at a time. There is one song that might justify a reprieve of sorts for the band; ‘Pushin’ Me Out’, which is a mildly entertaining take on Salt & Pepa’s ‘Push It’. Unfortunately, one half-hearted attempt at electro-clash does not a decent album make. In fact, the only thing that is remotely intriguing about this album is how any wily A&R executive, in this vibrant and diverse musical climate, could have considered this as being remotely suitable for release.
This would have been insufferable five years ago, before the boyband market had reached saturation point, but at this point in the game, it’s a pretty sorry excuse for an album. At the end of the day, it’s pretty safe to conclude that the world needs Stronger Together like a fish needs a frickin’ dildo.