Interscope Records
2001
'7'
About This Album
With teen pop trends changing ever more rapidly, the forces behind S Club 7 took action: just ten months after the release of their debut S Club, the inevitably named follow-up 7 arrived. However, in a misguided attempt to make the group's prefab pop sound more mature, 7 ditched their debut's fun, bouncy style in favor of by-the-numbers ballads and a forced eclecticism, both of which muddied S Club 7's sound instead of expanding it. Though their songs were never as recognizable as Britney, Christina, Backstreet, or 'N Sync's, S Club's cheerful, more innocent style at least set them apart from the rest of the teen pop B-list. But by adopting the poses of the style's bigger stars -- as on the Britney-esque "Natural" and the boy-band-lite "Best Friend" -- S Club 7 ends up sounding more faceless than before. Anonymous ballads like "Lately" and "Never Had a Dream Come True" emphasize the fact that the group's voices aren't as strong or interesting as those of teen pop's stars; the would-be dance-pop anthems "Bring the House Down" and "Love Train" (thankfully, not a cover of the O'Jays' classic) confirm just how thin the septet's pipes are.
Track List (try tracks 4,5,10 and 13)

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