Cherri V “Til The Sun Comes Up”
The past decade-and-a-half has seen so many classic pop and rock favorites sampled, interpolated or chopped up for some brand new pop, hip hop or R&B creation that we probably shouldn’t be too stirred that someone would think of messing with Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”. But when we heard London-born R&B tart Cherri V’s “Til The Sun Comes Up” and instantly recognized it’s utilization of both the ’90’s grunge-pop behemoth’s vocal and guitar melodies, we must admit we were floored: on one hand intrigued by such a ballsy move; on the other, ready to cry out “blasphemy” over someone actually daring to go through with the idea.
To it’s credit, “Til The Sun Comes Up” isn’t a complete nightmare: the combination of it’s “borrowed” rock “edge” and bubbly percussive jubilance generates a lively urban-pop kick that wouldn’t sound out of place supporting a manic Amerie wail or epic-sized Beyonce yowl. But thanks to flat lyrical boasts (“I’ll break you off/ You’ll never find another star shine like me”) and Cherri V’s underwhelmingly mixed vocals, which kind of simmer within the groove when they should be exploding like fireworks atop it, “Sun” lacks the over-the-top fire you would expect from a record made up of a such bold musical foundation, ultimately rendering it this anti-climactic letdown.
Surely the track’s Nirvana bite will attract some major attention Cherri V’s way (precisely the effect her and her handlers are banking on), but it’ll be interesting to see whether the response will ultimately skew positive (and make her pop’s hot new thing) or negative (and force her back to the drawing board to come up with an alternate introductory gimmick) as more and more ears catch whiff of it.
Cherri’s debut, Fast Cars, Silk Sheets and Favourite Guys, is slated for a late ‘09 release.
Wouldn’t be out of place for Amerie? How about sounds eerily similar to Amerie’s 1 Thing?