In this clash of the decades, Canadian glam rock band Platinum Blonde’s original hit single “Not in Love” has had two amazing makeovers. In early 2010, electro noise punk duo Crystal Castles covered it and in late 2010 it had a music legend voiceover.
Crowned NME’s coolest person of 2009, renegade babe Alice Glass rightfully abdicates her vocal contributions to “Not in Love” from their second self-titled LP, Crystal Castles (ii), to no other than The Cure’s frontman Robert Smith.
Having Alice Glass’s beloved shrill vocals distorted by a synthesizer to sound robotic made “Not in Love” artificial and edgy to the point of distaste, which is redeemed by the song’s beguiling electronic ambiance. Robert Smith fills in the discrepancies between the song’s human attributes and synthetic qualities.
For decades, Smith’s evocative voice has mesmerized The Cure fans and listeners and has proved that boys do cry. Smith’s consoling vocals, complimented by the poignant mood set by Crystal Castles, is synergy at work to create something more powerful than the two original pieces.
A fine example of transcendentalism; through Platinum’s Blonde’s success, one small hit has transformed into something mesmerizing to suit a modern audience.
This track saw the light of day Oct. 27, and has plagued the walls of music blogs and online publications ever since. This was a clever marketing ploy to build hype up to its Dec. 6 release.
“Not in Love [Feat. Robert Smith]” is one of the best collaborations period.
See related articles in Issue 3 (Due this week)
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