Aqua – Aquarius

Aqua
Artist: Aqua
Title: Aquarius
Label: MCA
Rating: 5.5/10

Aqua is the band most of us love to hate. Do you know what did it? It was that unlikely, annoying hit single “Barbie Girl”. They’ve been marked for certain as one-hit-wonders, but they’re back and apparently getting better.

“Cartoon Heroes” begins with helium-voiced Lene Hedin Nystrom and deep-voiced Rene Dif. On occasion, Lene will sound like that punk princess Gwen Steffani (No Doubt). While this track is silly as hell, it’s also really entertaining and infectious. It’s just as Lene sings, “Don’t take us all too serious.”

Even though I’m two seconds from digging a hole and sticking my head in it for admitting I like this track, I continue on.

“Around The World” isn’t too damn bad either. “We Belong To The Sea” might be the best track as Lene gets a bit more serious, and it suits her. I could see her being a huge success as a solo artist.

But finally, the letdown you knew had to come does. When Aqua relies on the clich, they are extremely annoying, enough so to make you want to vomit. Listen to “Freaky Friday”, “An Apple A Day”, and “Halloween”. Pure torture.

But Aqua has the ability to sound as professional as a Disney soundtrack, in a good way, with giant orchestration and power. “Aquarius” is made for Disney. It soars higher than any track and proves these guys can get serious and sound like a real outfit.

The best thing about Aqua is the power of Claus and Soeren who write the music. The dance rhythms are so powerful that you often forget the weak lyrics. The music makes the songs go down like candy while the lyrics are often like jawbreakers. Good or bad, Aqua is fun.

+ rae gun


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