
Listen to this: New singles from Fifth Harmony and The Stone Roses
By Nicholas Jennings
Girl groups and boy bands come and go, but the best outfits stick around on the strength of their songs. This week brings back a legendary English quartet and sees the return of girl power from a hit-making American quintet. Each has a hot new track guaranteed to satisfy old fans and attract new ones.
Fifth Harmony: “Write on Me”
The American girl group is picking up where the Spice Girls and Destiny’s Child left off. With its previous single, the irresistibly catchy
“Work from Home,” Fifth Harmony reached the #1 spot on
Billboard, marking the first time in 15 years that a girl group
topped the chart. Now 5H has a new album,
7/27,
the title of which refers to July 27, 2012, the date the group was formed on
The X Factor. The latest single is more
laid back but works its mid-tempo magic with a cool,
tropical vibe.
The appearance of Fifth Harmony on the cover of Billboard recently set the Twitterverse ablaze, especially with the publication of a group photo in which member Ally Brooke appeared to have two right feet — something that was attributed to a photoshop fail. Ally herself took it in good humor and tweeted a joke response to her 1.6 million followers.
When you're tryna look cute even tho you got two right feet pic.twitter.com/ti4CABVd06
— AllyBrooke Hernandez (@AllyBrooke) May 6, 2016
The Stone Roses: “All for One”
Fans of the legendary English rockers, who were at the
forefront of the “Madchester” indie scene of the late '80s and early ’90s, have
known for some time that something new was up. Tour dates for summer 2016 had
been announced. Then frontman Ian Brown told
NME in March that work on a new album was “going like a dream” and
that it “sounds glorious.” The influential band took to Twitter to announce the
release of its much-awaited first new material since 1995.
THE STONE ROSES WILL RELEASE A NEW SINGLE TONIGHT AT 8PM pic.twitter.com/oHYrmgwYYE
— The Stone Roses (@thestoneroses) May 12, 2016
Opening with a sinewy guitar, the new single is a robust call for unity. “If we all join hands, we’ll make a wall,” is the recurring refrain of the anthemic song, which promises to put the Oasis forerunners back in the spotlight.
Hello! music columnist Nicholas Jennings surveys the pop landscape each week to find the most dynamic tracks to add to your playlist.