The Ting Tings : Fruit Machine

I love the Ting Tings. Why? I cannot really say, but this was one of my favorite albums of last year; possibly the favorite. It's fun, poppy and raucous, like the good songs from No Doubt. And they really, really know how to craft a hook.

You've probably heard "Shut Up and Let Me Go" as that was a minor hit here in the states. It's a great song. They also had a hit in their native Britain with "Great DJ", which is also a great song. And you might have heard "That's Not My Name", which is another raver that makes you want to shake it like a dancer on Hullabaloo. But I think my favorite might be "Fruit Machine".

First of all, 'fruit machine' is British for 'slot machine' (you know, like 'lorry' for truck or 'loo' for the toilet). So, the song is all about a poor sucker who has it bad for the singer. He's addicted, feeding her money, looking for the payout that only comes sporadically. And she seems pretty happy about it, asking him where the money is. So it's got a sort of snotty vibe to it from the get-go. This is backed up by the driving dance beat and her chanting vocals which crescendo throughout the whole song, building a sort of happy tension that finally breaks in the end with her manically shouting "Ka-CHING!! Ka-CHING!!" You get the most out of the song if you holler it along with her and punctuate the shouts by yanking an imaginary lever. Ka-CHING!

"Fruit Machine" is off the Ting Tings' debut effort, We Started Nothing. It's a great album, as the first side is amazing and the second side holds its own. At 9 songs and 38 minutes, it's exactly the right length too.

[You can listen to The Ting Tings' "Fruit Machine" by navigating to the post "Song031" and clicking or right-clicking on the title or the link.]

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