Clean Bandit

The first listed track on the album “Symphony” was released as the third single that was included in the album. As the song featured the Swedish singer songwriter Zara Larsson, the song was included in her second album “So Good” as well. Jack Patterson from Clean Bandit co-wrote this song along with Ammar Malik, Ina Wroldsen and Steve Mac. This is a classical-pop, dance-pop song having a heavy synth and strong dance beats. It comes with a very strong and emotional music video directed by the band members that features a gay couple which tells the tragic story of a man who lost his partner in a bicycle crash. The video portrays how the gay couple spent their time together visiting places and then how his late partner turned to be his inspiration in producing a beautiful symphony. The video also features Zara Larsson in a glittery dress along with Clean Bandit and an orchestra while the heartbreaking story plays out. The song peaked at number one in the UK Singles chart along with several music charts in other countries like Sweden, Norway, Australia and the United States. Even though the track musically and lyrically does not produce much emotional impact, but the music video indeed does.

“Rockabye” is the third track of the album that features vocals by the English pop and R&B musician Anne-Marie and the Jamaican dancehall singer Sean Paul. This is mostly a pop track that was originally released as a single in 2016. Jack Patterson co-wrote this song along with the other featured vocalists Sean Paul, Anne-Marie and also other songwriters like Ammar Malik and Ina Wroldsen. The song was mostly written about the Norwegian singer Ina Wroldsen’s son. It is about a single mother doing everything she has to do including sacrifices and going through hard times, so that her son could have a better life. The song comes with a music video that has more than 2.1 billion views on YouTube, which mostly portrays the musicians at a bar and a young woman pole dancing while she is being watched by other men. This is an extremely catchy song that has gained significant commercial success across the planet and had topped the music charts in many countries like Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Lebanon, Ireland, United Kingdom and all over Europe. It also became the Christmas Number One for 2016, and spent nine consecutive weeks at the number one position on the UK Singles Chart. The powerful lyrics, Anne-Marie’s catchy vocals and the dancey tunes make this song very appealing to the listeners.

“I Miss You” is the eleventh track of the album that features vocals by the American singer and songwriter Julia Michaels, who was also a co-writer of this song besides the band members Grace Chatto and Jack Patterson. The song was released in October 2017 as the fourth single that was included in the album. Julia Michaels said on Twitter that she wrote this song at the height of an emotional roller coaster she was going through. Grace Chatto said to Billboard that this is a simple song that is about the pain of breaking up with someone. The song has a very strong emotional punch that makes it very appealing. It comes with a very catchy self-directed music video that was shot in the United Kingdom and a Los Angeles desert. Julia Michaels and the band members all dressed in red are seen singing along the railway tracks, intercut with some landscape shots and special effects. This song was also featured in many music charts across the world. It topped the music charts in Israel, Croatia and Netherlands, and was featured at the second position on Australia Dance (ARIA) Music chart.

I imagine all the people involved in the project of this album sitting in a boardroom in front of a blackboard writing a list of what they believe are the problems or situations that youth is going through right now and thus established the line of letters that they were going to write, wrong. In another list, they enumerated the rhythms and styles that have been massive success in the last two years and so decided the musical style of the disc, very bad. To show what I'm saying is the song: "Baby” features by Marina And The Diamonds y Luis Fonsi. I guess the dynamic was the following: “Lirics” checked, “Rithm” checked, “Singers” checked… Ready! We'll have a hit! Well, no, I'm sure that whoever does not want to participate in a formula project like this will be Luis Fonsi, who came to get what he probably never imagined with his song "Despacito", which became a global phenomenon without intending to. And that is what the composition is about, let creativity come when you have to; be honest, respect your roots and influences and from there to explore new things. Clean Bandit tried the opposite and the ridiculous was epic. Bad luck for the winner of X Factor UK 2015, Louisa Johnson, not because the theme she plays on this album is as bad as the others; in fact, it is one of the two or three issues to be rescued, but because for those who start a career as difficult as this is not good to relate it to a disk destined to failure. Her interpretative quality and the success that Clean Bandit had in sticking to its classic style, saved the song, with details on the melody that reminds me of Gloria Gaynor and the desire that Louisa Johnson has to transcend, the song, "Tears" may be the most satisfying of the band and its main interpreter on this album. Although with a video for oblivion, full of very visible resources and decadent visual messages, let's make an effort to listen to it.

Always is good to stop along the way and reflect where we want to go and where we are going in reality. When success surprises you, as it surprised the British Clean Bandit, there is nothing better to get away from the business mindset, that corrupts everything, and remain true to your artistic instinct which was what led you to achieve commercial success. They are not the first and will not be the last to go through experiences as bitter as these, but the important thing is to overcome it soon. Their nature is to make fun the nights when friends go out to dance, then the question is simple: What do you need to dance? And the answer is even simpler: rescuing the essence of Clean Bandit. I clarify that I'm not talking about formulas because that's what I criticize this album, I'm talking about sticking to your musical training and let the creativity take you to those places where you are an expert and you have given so much satisfaction to your fans. Neither is it about not changing or not experimenting with other musical genres, but to do so you must surround those who know and not try to make a copy that will not be interpreted with feeling because those roots are unknown, it will be impossible that someone else perceive the feeling. Not to stay with that bad impression that the album What Is Love? provokes, let's listen to the other song that I think has to be rescued also this Is "Should've Known Better" in which Anne-Marie collaborated. With a sweet voice and an excellent interpretative technique, the song has a very good rhythmic section an arrangement in the choruses that the truth is to envy anyone. What I've tried to say in all this narrative, is that it is not to panic, I'm sure that Clean Bandit will learn quickly from their mistakes, correct the course and surprise us again with a good album.