Post by kittencandy on Sept 10, 2020 18:41:28 GMT -5
Released in 1998, Pink is filled with songs mostly intended to poke fun at the BGD genre though Linnea Handberg's alter Ego, Miss Papaya. In spite of this, every song is geniunely enjoyable in its own right. Those who enjoy the genre more casually or prefer it in moderation may be turned away by the intensity, though; this is hardcore bubblegum. Each track is filled with sugar coated synths, bubbly basslines, popping percussion and fruity fills of various kinds, all brought together by the childlike character of Miss Papaya and her almost sickly sweet, high pitched vocals. While each song has a strong chorus, most follow it up with an irresistible vocal hook, often with few actual words.
Tracklist:
1: Operator
2: Hero
3: Pink Dinosaur
4: Supergirl
5: Teddy Bear
6: Sugarboy
7: Sweet Señorita
8: Casanova
9: Cinderella
10: Mr. Macho Man
11: Party Song
12: Please Don't Leave Me Tonight
Operator - A similar concept to Aqua's Calling You, with a greater sound of longing in Handberg's vocals. In the song, Papaya is feeling insecure about a lack of contact from a romantic partner, to the point of wondering if it's all been in her head. With rising synth pads, a staccato lead synth, a galloping bass and a general four to the floor beat with more hi-hats than a typical example, the song creates a slight unease to reflect the protagonist's anxiety, while still retaining a playful tone. The song is perhaps a play on the trope in popular music seen in such songs as Whitney Houston's How Will I Know, or When Will I See You Again but The Three Degrees, but it still conveys a sense of genuine emotion without sounding any less fun for it.
Hero - Perhaps the project's best known song, Hero is a fun and playful jab at the traditional depiction of a superhero's love interest. The lyrics simultaneously describe both the traditional image of a girl smitten with a superhero, while subtly implying the possibility of a one night stand. The percussion, while retaining the same rhythm, takes more of a latin inspiration, while the bass is simpler, playing every offbeat. The synth pads follow more of a traditional chord progression for the genre, and at a considerably faster harmonic rhythm, with the lead synth mostly playing triads on every offbeat. An acoustic guitar comes in at the chorus, also playing triads, but in a different rhythm, and a different synth timbre fills in the spaces between Handberg's vocals. As before, this may also be an affectionate parody of love songs which use superhero imagery.
Pink Dinosaur - This may be the most bizarre song on the album, and the cuteness is turned all the way up to eleven. Having a pink baby dinosaur for a pet/companion is certainly not the most common subject matter in popular music, but the song is all the more memorable for it. The synth pads are very similar to Hero, albeit with a much simpler percussion this time. The bass is also very similar, with a synth voice playing triads in the same rhythm as the guitar in Hero. The song also makes use of a lead synth melody after each chorus. In this case, the vocal hook of the song is embedded in the chorus, rather than coming after it.
Supergirl - Interestingly, this song seems to almost reverse the roles from Hero. The lyrics sound much like a child fantasising about what superpowers would be like, and the euphoric synth pads support the dreamlike lyrics. The bass also feels slightly more active here, and the percussion regains its latin influence. A few more layers of synth fill out the song, but with no real instrumental break in the song, there isn't much of a memorable lead synth melody anywhere. Perhaps of note is that the lyrics also imply that Papaya is trying to impress a love interest with her powers, something more commonly associated with male characters with superpowers, especially at the time.
Teddy Bear - While some of the lyrics sound similar to the song of the same name by Toy-Box, the tone of this song is vastly different. Light and playful, it even includes lyrics which resemble Bambee's later song Red, Yellow, Green and Blue. The synth pads and music box sounds are downright mesmerising, creating a lullaby feeling of spiralling downward. The percussion remains largely the same and the bass is playful here. This song also makes use of triads both from a lead synth and acoustic guitar in the chorus. As with Supergirl, the lyrics sound to depict a child's attachment to a toy, while reading quite easily as being about love to adults.
Sugarboy - Playing with another trope in popular music of being irresistibly drawn to a "bad boy". The song uses simple percussion, bass and synth pads, but fills out with a few more layers of synth. There are some more synth and guitar triads here, and while the song does have a vocal hook outside the chorus, it uses it more sparingly, following most choruses up with a lead synth melody. In spite of the song's exaggerated nature, the line "I don't wanna fall in love, but inside I know that I do" remains somewhat relatable.
Sweet Señorita - Not to be confused with the Smile.dk song of the same name, this song plays with the depiction of the Spanish/South American as highly romantic. The instrumentation is changed up somewhat; favouring classical guitars and trumpets, along with the same percussion, bass and synths. It also uses the descending chord progression often associated with the theme throughout, and ends many phrases of the song with the kind of guitar resolution often associated with the tango. In general, this song breaks from much of the album in the way of structure, having neither a vocal hook outside the chorus nor a memorable lead synth melody.
Casanova - Featuring slightly less fantastical lyrics, Casanova is closer to more of a typical love song in pop music while still dialing up the sweetness all the way. The whole song has a very romantic feel, from the synths pads to Handberg's vocals. In particular, the vocal hook of "la-da-dee la-da-da" is similar to a similar hook Anila Mirza would later sing in WWW. Girl by Toy-Box. The percussion remains largely the same, while the bass plays mostly triplets. An acoustic guitar fills the song out with more triads, and something of a lead synth melody plays under the vocal hook.
Cinderella - As the title would suggest, the song is something of a retelling of the fairy tale. Carrying perhaps the most catchy and effective hook on the album, making very clever use of syncopation on every other repetition of it. The bass feels bouncy, with a couple of layers of synth above the pads, and the occasional use of magical sparkling sound effects is the icing on the cake. The song creates the feeling of seeing the well known story from a child's perspective, without the sadder and darker elements. The song is perhaps more similar to something from Aqua or Toy-Box, in that regard.
Mr. Macho Man - This song is likely the biggest statement on traditional femininity on the album. A highly exaggerated take on the typical "girly" love song, Papaya is apparently smitten with the embodiment of traditional masculinity, perhaps making an equally strong statement on that. This is especially apparent when contrasted with Handberg's later song No Princess, which, while still very much bubblegum, had more of an edge to it in both the lyrics and the vocals. The song also carries the strongest innuendo in its subtext by far. Much of the instrumental is quite simple, percussion, bass pads and guitar playing fairly standard rhythm, as if to drive the point home further.
Party Song - Seemingly ditching the fantastical subject matter for a more down to Earth celebratory feel and simple catchiness. This could also be considered a parody of pop songs with very little substance, but it still manages to be very enjoyable. Aside from Sweet Señorita, the latin influence may be strongest here, with more gentle percussion and instrumentals filled by steelpans. Overall, the song gives a feeling of simple comfort.
Please Don't Leave Me Tonight - Being the heartbreak song, this obviously stands out from the rest of the album, and could be considered a parody of the obligatory slow song on a BGD album. Toning down the percussion, bass and synths while giving more prominence to the guitar actually creating most of the atmosphere instead of just playing triads. Handberg's vocals sound sincere enough to come directly from her, rather than through Miss Papaya, and the song is simply relaxing. after all of the craziness before it, this is actually a really nice way to close out the album.
Overall, the album is highly enjoyable, despite the somewhat ironic nature, or perhaps because of it. Handberg found a way to take the most fun parts of the BGD genre and turn each of them all the way up to 11. I would absolutely recommend it to any fan of the genre unfamiliar with it, and I would rate this album 8/10.
Tracklist:
1: Operator
2: Hero
3: Pink Dinosaur
4: Supergirl
5: Teddy Bear
6: Sugarboy
7: Sweet Señorita
8: Casanova
9: Cinderella
10: Mr. Macho Man
11: Party Song
12: Please Don't Leave Me Tonight
Operator - A similar concept to Aqua's Calling You, with a greater sound of longing in Handberg's vocals. In the song, Papaya is feeling insecure about a lack of contact from a romantic partner, to the point of wondering if it's all been in her head. With rising synth pads, a staccato lead synth, a galloping bass and a general four to the floor beat with more hi-hats than a typical example, the song creates a slight unease to reflect the protagonist's anxiety, while still retaining a playful tone. The song is perhaps a play on the trope in popular music seen in such songs as Whitney Houston's How Will I Know, or When Will I See You Again but The Three Degrees, but it still conveys a sense of genuine emotion without sounding any less fun for it.
Hero - Perhaps the project's best known song, Hero is a fun and playful jab at the traditional depiction of a superhero's love interest. The lyrics simultaneously describe both the traditional image of a girl smitten with a superhero, while subtly implying the possibility of a one night stand. The percussion, while retaining the same rhythm, takes more of a latin inspiration, while the bass is simpler, playing every offbeat. The synth pads follow more of a traditional chord progression for the genre, and at a considerably faster harmonic rhythm, with the lead synth mostly playing triads on every offbeat. An acoustic guitar comes in at the chorus, also playing triads, but in a different rhythm, and a different synth timbre fills in the spaces between Handberg's vocals. As before, this may also be an affectionate parody of love songs which use superhero imagery.
Pink Dinosaur - This may be the most bizarre song on the album, and the cuteness is turned all the way up to eleven. Having a pink baby dinosaur for a pet/companion is certainly not the most common subject matter in popular music, but the song is all the more memorable for it. The synth pads are very similar to Hero, albeit with a much simpler percussion this time. The bass is also very similar, with a synth voice playing triads in the same rhythm as the guitar in Hero. The song also makes use of a lead synth melody after each chorus. In this case, the vocal hook of the song is embedded in the chorus, rather than coming after it.
Supergirl - Interestingly, this song seems to almost reverse the roles from Hero. The lyrics sound much like a child fantasising about what superpowers would be like, and the euphoric synth pads support the dreamlike lyrics. The bass also feels slightly more active here, and the percussion regains its latin influence. A few more layers of synth fill out the song, but with no real instrumental break in the song, there isn't much of a memorable lead synth melody anywhere. Perhaps of note is that the lyrics also imply that Papaya is trying to impress a love interest with her powers, something more commonly associated with male characters with superpowers, especially at the time.
Teddy Bear - While some of the lyrics sound similar to the song of the same name by Toy-Box, the tone of this song is vastly different. Light and playful, it even includes lyrics which resemble Bambee's later song Red, Yellow, Green and Blue. The synth pads and music box sounds are downright mesmerising, creating a lullaby feeling of spiralling downward. The percussion remains largely the same and the bass is playful here. This song also makes use of triads both from a lead synth and acoustic guitar in the chorus. As with Supergirl, the lyrics sound to depict a child's attachment to a toy, while reading quite easily as being about love to adults.
Sugarboy - Playing with another trope in popular music of being irresistibly drawn to a "bad boy". The song uses simple percussion, bass and synth pads, but fills out with a few more layers of synth. There are some more synth and guitar triads here, and while the song does have a vocal hook outside the chorus, it uses it more sparingly, following most choruses up with a lead synth melody. In spite of the song's exaggerated nature, the line "I don't wanna fall in love, but inside I know that I do" remains somewhat relatable.
Sweet Señorita - Not to be confused with the Smile.dk song of the same name, this song plays with the depiction of the Spanish/South American as highly romantic. The instrumentation is changed up somewhat; favouring classical guitars and trumpets, along with the same percussion, bass and synths. It also uses the descending chord progression often associated with the theme throughout, and ends many phrases of the song with the kind of guitar resolution often associated with the tango. In general, this song breaks from much of the album in the way of structure, having neither a vocal hook outside the chorus nor a memorable lead synth melody.
Casanova - Featuring slightly less fantastical lyrics, Casanova is closer to more of a typical love song in pop music while still dialing up the sweetness all the way. The whole song has a very romantic feel, from the synths pads to Handberg's vocals. In particular, the vocal hook of "la-da-dee la-da-da" is similar to a similar hook Anila Mirza would later sing in WWW. Girl by Toy-Box. The percussion remains largely the same, while the bass plays mostly triplets. An acoustic guitar fills the song out with more triads, and something of a lead synth melody plays under the vocal hook.
Cinderella - As the title would suggest, the song is something of a retelling of the fairy tale. Carrying perhaps the most catchy and effective hook on the album, making very clever use of syncopation on every other repetition of it. The bass feels bouncy, with a couple of layers of synth above the pads, and the occasional use of magical sparkling sound effects is the icing on the cake. The song creates the feeling of seeing the well known story from a child's perspective, without the sadder and darker elements. The song is perhaps more similar to something from Aqua or Toy-Box, in that regard.
Mr. Macho Man - This song is likely the biggest statement on traditional femininity on the album. A highly exaggerated take on the typical "girly" love song, Papaya is apparently smitten with the embodiment of traditional masculinity, perhaps making an equally strong statement on that. This is especially apparent when contrasted with Handberg's later song No Princess, which, while still very much bubblegum, had more of an edge to it in both the lyrics and the vocals. The song also carries the strongest innuendo in its subtext by far. Much of the instrumental is quite simple, percussion, bass pads and guitar playing fairly standard rhythm, as if to drive the point home further.
Party Song - Seemingly ditching the fantastical subject matter for a more down to Earth celebratory feel and simple catchiness. This could also be considered a parody of pop songs with very little substance, but it still manages to be very enjoyable. Aside from Sweet Señorita, the latin influence may be strongest here, with more gentle percussion and instrumentals filled by steelpans. Overall, the song gives a feeling of simple comfort.
Please Don't Leave Me Tonight - Being the heartbreak song, this obviously stands out from the rest of the album, and could be considered a parody of the obligatory slow song on a BGD album. Toning down the percussion, bass and synths while giving more prominence to the guitar actually creating most of the atmosphere instead of just playing triads. Handberg's vocals sound sincere enough to come directly from her, rather than through Miss Papaya, and the song is simply relaxing. after all of the craziness before it, this is actually a really nice way to close out the album.
Overall, the album is highly enjoyable, despite the somewhat ironic nature, or perhaps because of it. Handberg found a way to take the most fun parts of the BGD genre and turn each of them all the way up to 11. I would absolutely recommend it to any fan of the genre unfamiliar with it, and I would rate this album 8/10.
