Xenomania
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Xenomania are one of the UK's leading pop production houses, put together by writer and producer Brian Higgins. They are known for the wide influences present in their productions, most notably in their principal act, Girls Aloud. Strands of electro, more traditional pop, rave, power pop, and dance can all be found in their productions. The name "Xenomania" means, according to Higgins, "the exact opposite of Xenophobia...a love of everything, of all cultures."[1] Members of the Xenomania writing and production team include Nick Coler, Giselle Sommerville, Miranda Cooper (also known as Moonbaby, and who shares co-writing credits in nearly all Xenomania-written tracks), Lisa Cowling, Tim Powell, and Matt Gray.
Xenomania have produced and remixed tracks for some of the most successful pop acts of the 2000s, including tracks for Sugababes, Girls Aloud, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Kylie Minogue, Cher, Shakin Stevens, Steps, Texas, and Mania, who are comprised of former Xenomania (and ex-The Cinematic Orchestra contributor) Niara Scarlett and Giselle Sommerville. In particular, all 17 of Girls Aloud's singles (not including their collaboration with Sugababes on "Walk This Way", produced by Dallas Austin) have been produced by them and have reached the top ten. Of Higgins and Xenomania, Girls Aloud's former manager, Louis Walsh, says, "He just makes great songs for radio. They just jump out at you and stay in your brain."[2]
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[edit] History and Philosophy
Brian Higgins found early success producing hits for Dannii Minogue, specifically for her third studio album, Girl, which, though gaining favorable reviews at the time, failed to crack the British Top Fifty. However, the success of the lead single, "All I Wanna Do", led Higgins to to write Cher's international #1 hit single "Believe." Although the song out-performed all expectations and won him three Ivor Novello awards, when London Records was sold in the late 1990s, Higgins found himself without a label, so he decided to found Xenomania as an independent production company based in Kent, outside of London, because it is "somewhere where concentration would be easy [and] no one 'pops' in."
Of the production group's philosophy and outlook, Higgins says, "What we stand for...is everything about the interesting side of music, but with tunes the postman will whistle." The wide reaching and varied musical style that defines the production house's sound is influenced by Higgins own wide tastes growing up, which included punk rock groups such as the Buzzcocks and the Sex Pistols, as well as more electronic groups such as New Order and Depeche Mode.
On Xenomania's relatively low output (compared to a group like Stock, Aitken & Waterman), Higgins says,
"If you're a production house, you're supposed to work with anyone and everyone: that's the rule...but if we don't feel excited by the prospect of the artist, then the record's going to be shit. The MDs don't tend to understand it when you turn them down - they just think you're being arrogant - but if we'd made records for everyone we'd been asked to over the last couple of years, I'd be a husk of a person by now. There'd be loads of money around, but the music would be terrible, and the depression would be raging through me."
[edit] Work
In 2007, Xenomania worked with Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Alesha Dixon, and produced two songs for Sugababes' fifth studio album Change. In addition, they have writing credits on all of Girls Aloud's recently released fourth studio album, Tangled Up, which was released in November 2007. The production team also been working with Franz Ferdinand on their third studio album, a step out of both Xenomania and the band's comfort zones.
To come in 2008 is the Xenomania-produced debut album from up and coming singer Gabriella Cilmi (Island Records). Her first single "Sweet About Me" was released in March 2008, with an album Lessons To Be Learned to follow. Also due in April 2008 is their work on the second album from Norwegian singer Annie. In May 2008, the Pet Shop Boys announced on their official website that they were working with Xenomania on tracks for their album planned for release 'in early 2009'.
[edit] Critical response
Xenomania's writing and production work, specifically for the girl group Girls Aloud, has been consistently praised by the media. "Listening to [Girls Aloud's second studio album] What Will The Neighbours Say?, you constantly get the impression that Higgins and Xenomania are enraptured by the possibilities of pop music...", said Alexis Petridis in a November 2004 review for The Guardian.[3] He goes on to say, "The results are so spectacular that you rarely notice Girls Aloud's voices, which are in tune, but so devoid of emotion you begin to wonder if English is their first language."
However, in his review for Girls Aloud's fourth studio album, Tangled Up, Nick Butler says that, though "Sexy! No No No..." "...is a great song...the production overshadows the intended stars to the point where [it] almost sounds like sabotage. It's indicative of the theme of the album, Xenomania audibly muscling Girls Aloud out of the picture. They might as well rename themselves Egomania."[4]
Elsewhere, Alex Kapranos, lead singer of Scottish band Franz Ferdinand, said of their upcoming collaboration with Higgins and Xenomania, "We've been interested in Brian for years. His production of Girls Aloud's "Wake Me Up" first caught my attention. I remember thinking: 'What the hell is that? It's amazing'. There was something about their sound which was immediate but dangerous - rare in a girl group. It was really edgy. I've a lot of admiration for the Xenomania team."[5] However, the collaboration fell through. Kapranos said, "We just realised that we're not really a pop group. We're just a band that happens to cross over into the whole pop sphere."[6]
[edit] List of acts who have performed Xenomania songs
[edit] TriviaXenomania were scheduled to work with Britney Spears, but the song they submitted, "Graffiti My Soul" was decided as not appropriate for her 2003 album In The Zone; the track was later featured on Girls Aloud's second album What Will The Neighbours Say?. Spears' record company apparently wanted a song "Which was essentially 'Sound of the Underground 2,'" Brian Higgins said, in a 2004 The Observer interview. When Spears' people heard the song they submitted, they reportedly said "Where's the chorus? Why are there no repetitive parts?" A collaboration between Brian Higgins and New Order was planned around the time of their album Waiting for the Sirens' Call but, according to Peter Hook, "We scrapped the Brian Higgins stuff because we didn’t like it. I thought he did quite a good job on Girls Aloud but he didn’t do a good job on us."[7] A common feature of Xenomania produced tracks is a reverse-cymbal noise which usually precedes a verse or chorus. It is evident at the start of Sugababes' "Red Dress", at 0:06 of Girls Aloud's "The Show", at 0:06 of Kylie's "Made Of Glass", at (but not limited to) 0:13 of Cher's "Believe", and at (but not limited to) 0:13 of Girls Aloud's "It's Magic". [edit] Brian Higgins/Xenomania Production credits[edit] References
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