CD of the Week: V

V
"YOU STOOD UP"
(Universal Island/UK, 2004)

As much as I love boybands, even I was a little overwhelmed by the avalanche of them that occurred in the late '90s following the success of Backstreet Boys and NSYNC. A few were good and stood the test of time, but most were mediocre and disappeared after their first album, and the boyband phenomenon died out almost as quickly as it appeared. Apparently someone thought it was never too early for a boyband renaissance, as we saw a new (and significantly smaller) crop of them appear a few years ago in the UK. Arguably the best of them was a group called V.

V eschewed the standard synth-dance-pop formula in favor of a more mature, guitar-based sound. I don't know if it's for that reason alone, but every song on this album is excellent. From the funky attitude of "Blood, Sweat & Tears" and "Walk On", to the foot-shuffling pop of "Hold Me" and "Hip To Hip", to the tender balladry of the title track and "Stop The Tears", and capped with a fantastic cover of the Jackson 5 classic "Can You Feel It", this is quite simply boyband pop at its best -- complete with well-written songs and expertly sung vocals all around. There are the incidental pluses about the album (at least one songwriting credit and one guitar contribution by Espen Lind, and a featured appearance by McFly's Tom and Danny) that may have initially drawn me to it, but I'm certain I would have eventually happened upon it and enjoyed it just as much without them. Sure, it may not be perfect ... the lyrics in "Hip To Hip" could have been a bit more sophisticated in places, and "Earth, Wind & Fire" sounds just a little bit too much like "Blood, Sweat & Tears" ... but there's very little that could have made this album any better than it was.

Unfortunately, the lads of V weren't able to muster enough support or record sales, and the group broke up after its one and only album. Perhaps the world wasn't quite ready for a boyband resurgence, because with an album this good, I can't fathom why else their recording career ended so quickly. I'll forever wonder what a brilliant sophomore album they would have recorded if they'd been given the chance, because they inevitably get better as they progress, and precious few boybands' debut albums are as good as this one was.