Review Summary: commence the sex.
One word to describe Vanilla Ninja would be “bizarre”. Although they play the kind of pop rock that has been a done a zillion times before (Kelly Clarkson, t.A.T.u, Kerli, etc.), they are absolutely strange about it. Pop rock artists often stick to their weak guns with squeaky clean guitars and the like – Vanilla Ninja does not. Vanilla Ninja’s guitars are so jarringly loud that you’ll swear they were recorded in an underground coliseum. Some bands just want to rock hard. Unfortunately, the girls were rock stars of Estonia, which explains why the band is mostly unheard of elsewhere.
Vanilla Ninja is not strict pop rock, it is loose and spontaneous. Guitars may slip to metal, songs may be influenced by gothic music, and there may be a bit of orchestration. Despite all this, the band still sounds ridiculously old. Synthesizers are a dominant force in the album and provide cheesy energy, much like trance music. The girls love their bag of tricks, so they will continually whack their audience over the head with it (like if a hot girl slaps you; it may have stung, and you may question your manhood for being hit by a girl, but you still have the uncontrollable urge to rip off her clothes with your teeth and then to commence the sex. Wild and sexy, this album is most certainly worth your time.
Looking at the band’s image, they seem like engineered products, but truthfully, they are not. “What about the songs?” asks the music snob, “Surely their producers wrote those instant pop hits!” This is a false assumption. The lead singer/guitarist writes the songs and the lyrics. “Oh come on”, retorts the music snob whiningly, “They’re a bunch of ditzy girls in a pop rock band, how could they possibly be any good?!” True, Vanilla Ninja is possibly the most clichéd band ever (in both sound style and image), but they still rock. ‘Kingdom Burning Down’ is a lovely example of why this album is good. The vocal hooks, guitar hooks, and silly synthesizers make a fun listen, and if all you want is a bit of fun, look no further.
Recommended Songs:
- Kingdom Burning Down
- Dangerzone (Long Version)
- Shadows on the Moon
- Black Symphony
- Battlefield
- Insane in Vain
