MARCUS – “POP MUSIK 2001”
“hi, my name is marcus and i’m a pop-oholic”
the very idea of a remake of”pop musik” at this particular time in music is a fantastic one. “pop musik” is a celebration of just that and, frankly, there hasn’t been a time more worthy of celebration for the pop fan that the last five or so years, a period in wh ich not only has pop music been unbelievably successful, but it has also made some artistic inroads in large part due to the output of max martin and timbaland . a well-done redux of “pop music,” then, could’ve been to the new pop movement what “last dance” was to disco: the cherry on top, a big pat-on-the-back to all involved, and an exhortation to keep on keepin’ on. not to mention a potential theme song for freaky trigger, for this very page.
and marcus, who sounds like an adenoid-free and parent-friendly eminem, gets off to a fine start with an opening couplet that goes:
“i like that song ‘candy,’ i want some more of mandy”
from there on out, it doesn’t go wrong so much as it goes astray. replacing the familiar “new york, london, paris, munich, everybody talk about pop music” refrain — where have i heard THAT before, says the informed nylpm writer — is one that substitutes in current day pop stars and martyrs, e.g. “new kids, puffy, spice girls, ricky, everybody talk about pop music.” (note: christina aguilera is referred to as “christine” — can she find respect anywhere?) a bit jarring, right? doesn’t quite have the same ring to it and the same can be said of the song itself. what begins as a teen pop fete turns into something hollow, by-the-numbers; it turns, in fact, into a label a & r man’s decision to ride this pop wave for all of its worth, a tactic that shouldn’t surprise the listener when he discovers that marcus is on the same label as o-town, famously formed on a t.v. show by teen pop svengali lou pearlman. a noble idea trampled and a classic song soiled in the name of commercialism: it’s enough to make one sick. but i bet chuck eddy still likes it.