Rihanna - We Found Love

The best video of 2011 - amazing!



Spyke

Sometimes a music video can make a song (see Lady Gaga's Telephone), and this one certainly upgrades the track to 10/10 status. Obviously a new Rihanna single was always going to rack up the play counts on my laptop's itunes and so this soon hit it's 100th play within a few days. However I wasn't fully convinced that the track was really all that. A year ago we were able to compare Rihanna's return to commercial heights (album wise at least) with Only Girl (In The World) against Kelly Rowland's second team up with David Guetta on Commander. Both songs are similar in terms of structure, sound and vocal delivery but Only Girl soars above the latter for some reason; it has that rare finesse that allows songs to claim their millionth sale in the UK. With Love The Way You Lie becoming the 108th million seller just last week, Rihanna looks to be set to claim her second with Only Girl by the end of 2011.

We Found Love sits very nicely within the UK's music scene at the moment. In a year that has seen the likes of Nero, Example and Calvin Harris at the top of the charts this track feels very much at home. I was slightly concerned as to whether the same sound would cross over just as effectively in the US; but given the boost the video has given this track on itunes it will only be a matter of time before Rihanna ends Adele's reign at the top of the Hot 100 to claim her 11th US #1. So given the repetitive lyrics and standard Calvin electro magic, what makes this 7/10 track able to compete with Rihanna's impressive back-catalogue? The video.

Lady Gaga listen up - this is how you make a GREAT video in 2011 - I have high hopes for Marry The Night! I love the cinematic feel; right from the intro I'm hooked. Controversially filmed in Belfast, this video is unashamedly British; the field rave, the council estates and the drink/drugs culture. It has the feel of 'This Is England' and tells a story. The spoken 'It's like you're screaming, and no one can hear; you almost feel ashamed, that someone could be that important' that opens the track are moving; they are very reminiscent of All Saints' Never Ever. The beginning shows vulnerability that reminds me of The Artic Monkey's When The Sun Goes Down; I can only imagine the marvel of seeing the video for the first time without knowing where the song is about to go! I'd have been getting excited for another Rated R esque ballad until the Thunder kicks in; breaking the mood and throwing you full force into the electro sounds that are just about to hit in.

Calvin Harris ended his DJ Set with this track when I saw him supporting Rihanna at Manchester's MEN Arena. That was the day Rihanna first hit #1 in the UK with this track after being rush released earlier that same week; unfortunately it was one of the notable exemptions from Rihanna's 26 song set (along with the incredible Russian Roulette). With the track's original release date planned for two weeks time I would be very surprised if it is still being omitted from her later tour dates in the UK (namely before Christmas when Oli goes to see her at the O2).