Untouched (song)

"Untouched"
Single by The Veronicas
from the album Hook Me Up
B-side "Hollywood"
Released 8 December 2007
Recorded 2006
Genre Dance-pop
Pop-rock[1][2]
Length 4:14 (album version)
3:21 (radio edit)
3:41 (video edit)
Label Sire
Writer(s) Toby Gad, Jessica Origliasso, Lisa Origliasso
Producer(s) Toby Gad
Certification Platinum (ARIA, RIAA)
Gold (RIANZ)
The Veronicas singles chronology
"Hook Me Up"
(2007)		 "Untouched"
(2007)		 "This Love"
(2008)
The Veronicas UK singles chronology
"Untouched"
(2009)		 "4ever"
(2009)
The Veronicas US singles chronology
"When It All Falls Apart"
(2006)		 "Untouched"
(2008)		 "Take Me on the Floor"
(2009)

"Untouched" is a song by Australian recording group The Veronicas, which is featured on their second studio album Hook Me Up (2007). The song was written by Jessica and Lisa Origliasso, and Toby Gad and was produced by Gad as well. It was released as the second single from the band's album in Australia on 10 December 2007, and the first single in the UK and US.

"Untouched" received generally positive reviews from music critics, which applauded the departure from their previous music, with some highlighting it as the albums standout track and some even compared it to singers Pink and Avril Lavigne. The song was commercially successful worldwide, as the song reached number seventeen on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, becoming the group's first top twenty there and was known as their breakthrough single. The song also peaked at number eight in the UK, number two in their native Australia, number nine in New Zealand and at number one in Ireland. The song was certificated platinum by Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), selling over one million shipments there.

An accompanying music video was released for the single, directed by Anthony Rose, where it was shot in Sydney, Australia. The video starts with a lot of pictures in the hallway. The video received generally positive reviews, having over 25 million hits on YouTube, remaining the group's highest viewing video.[3] The song was featured in 90210[4] and then in Hellcats and also on EA Sports FIFA 09. The song has also been nominated for different awards, being nominated for Highest Selling Single at the ARIA Music Awards and nominated for Favorite Song at the Nickelodeon Australian Kids' Choice Awards.

Background and composition

"Untouched" was written by The Veronicas twins Jessica Origliasso, Lisa Origliasso and Toby Gad, with Gad also producing the track. Writing and recording of the song took place at Jessica and Lisa's home in Los Angeles, California[5] The song relates to Jessica and Lisa's feelings of separation from loved ones.[6] In an interview with Rachel Jones of Female First, Lisa explained the theme of "Untouched": "It's about not physically being able to touch someone or be with them but kind of needing that person".[7]

"Untouched" is an electropop song set in common time with an energy-filled fast tempo of 176 beats per minute.[8][9] The song is written in the key of F-sharp minor.[8] The song begins with strings, which are sometimes performed by a real string section in live performances, followed by guitars and synthesized drums. Lisa and Jess's vocal ranges span from A3-E5.[8]

Critical reception

Ben Norman from About.com said ""Untouched" is fast, both in BPM and in the way the twins vocally present the song, yet it proves once again that speed and pain are not mutually exclusive ideas.".[10] K. Ross Hoffman from Allmusic had highlighted the track as an album standout, saying " "Untouched" bursts out of the gate with majestic, menacing string stabs and a driving synth-rock pulse beneath its stuttered verses and breathlessly obsessive refrain."[11] Emily Mackay from NME gave it a positive remark from the album review as she described the song as "raunchy". Evan Sawdey from PopMatters highlighted "Untouched" as a standout, saying "some of the best tracks the girls have ever made, some of which (“Untouched,” “Revenge Is Sweeter”) even outclass previous high points like Secret Life‘s flawless anthem “When It All Falls Apart”."[12]

David Balls from Digital Spy gave it a fairly favorable review, as he gave it three stars out of five. He said "Though it's been knocking about for a while, it's 'Untouched' that The Veronicas are touting as their breakthrough single over here." He concluded saying "There's little in the way of originality here, but the girls' vampish style and quirky charm should work in their favour.". He had compared the song to work to Pink and Avril Lavigne.[13] FemaleFirst.co.uk gave the song four-and-a-half out of five stars, saying "Other than that, this looks set to be an epic dance floor tune over the summer of 2009, it’s definitely finding a place on my iPod that’s for sure!".[14]

Chart performance

In their native Australia, the song had debuted at number four, until peaking at number two for three consecutive weeks. The song stayed in the charts for a total of twenty-nine weeks and was certificated platinum by Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), shipping over 70,000 copies there. The song became the seventy-eighth best-selling single in Australia in 2007.[15] The song had also debuted at number thirty-four, after peaking at number nine on the New Zealand Singles Chart. The song was certificated gold by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ), shipping over 7,500 copies there."Untouched" made its debut on the US Billboard charts at number sixteen on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart,[16] but eventually dropped off the charts until 3 December 2008, when it rose to number sixty-two on the Hot 100 countdown, due to radio play, and became their first Hot 100 entry.[17] The song later peaked at number seventeen as of 30 January 2009, making it their first top 20 hit in the U.S.[18] The single has been certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), selling over one million paid downloads.[18][19] "Untouched" debuted on the UK Singles Chart at 92.[20] "Untouched" received an "MTV Push" and large amounts of airplay on music channels when it was officially released on 25 May 2009.[21] On 31 May 2009, "Untouched" re-entered the chart at #8, becoming its British chart peak. In Ireland, the song debuted at #2 in the Irish Singles Chart on 29 May. After two weeks in the #2 spot, on 12 June 2009, "Untouched" climbed to #1 on the Irish Singles Chart, making "Untouched" The Veronicas' first number-one single outside of Australia.

Music video

The music video for the song was filmed at the Marble Bar in Sydney’s Hilton Building and it took eighteen hours to film with fifty extras dressed in gothic glamour.[22] The video starts with a lot of pictures in the hallway. It goes to the band performing with a crowd in front of them. Jess and Lisa are in the hallway singing. They meet a man later. In the chorus, Jess and Lisa perform with the rest of the group. Jess is hanging around with the man and after a while, she goes to get something. The man then sees Lisa walking around in the crowd, and, since they are twins, he thinks that she is Jess. So he follows her and brings her back to the couch where he was sitting. In a little bit, Jess comes back to the couch. She sees that the man is kissing Lisa, and is offended. They see that he is trying to make a move with both of them, so together, they walk away. The music video was released on 3 December 2007 to Australian music channel shows. The video made its debut on MTV's TRL as a first look on 9 July 2008,[23] and a week later made its debut on the countdown at #10.[24]

Live performance

The Veronicas had performed the song live at the ARIA Music Awards in 2008.[25]

Track listing

iTunes single
  1. "Untouched" – 4:14
CD single
  1. "Untouched" – 4:14
  2. "Hollywood" – 3:46
  3. "Hook Me Up" (Tommy Trash remix) – 2:53
iTunes EP "Lost Tracks"
  1. "Untouched" – 4:14
  2. "Untouched" (acoustic) – 3:39
  3. "Hollywood" – 3:46
  4. "Insomnia" – 3:22
  5. "Everything" – 3:28
Remixes EP
  1. "Untouched" (Eddie Amador remix edit) – 4:47
  2. "Untouched" (Napack - Dangerous Muse remix edit) – 4:52
  3. "Untouched" (Designers Drugs remix edit) – 4:49
  4. "Untouched" (Von Doom radio) – 4:07
CD remixes promo
  1. "Untouched" (Eddie Amador Club remix) – 8:13
  2. "Untouched" (Eddie Amador Dub) – 7:45
  3. "Untouched" (Napack - Dangerous Muse remix) – 8:15
  4. "Untouched" (Napack - Dangerous Muse Dub) – 6:30
  5. "Untouched" (Von Doom Club mix) – 7:34
  6. "Untouched" (Von Doom mixshow) – 5:58
  7. "Untouched" (Designers Drugs remix) – 5:34

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2007–2009) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[26] 2
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[27] 23
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[28] 12
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[29] 5
Europe (European Hot 100 Singles)[30] 22
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[31] 10
Germany (Media Control Charts)[32] 48
Ireland (IRMA)[33] 1
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[34] 5
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[35] 9
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[36] 34
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[37] 8
US Billboard Hot 100[38] 17
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[39] 12

Year-end charts

Chart (2007) Position
Australia (ARIA)[40] 78
Chart (2008) Position
Australia (ARIA)[41] 21
Hungary (Rádiós Top 40)[42] 120
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[43] 34
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[44] 69
Chart (2009) Position
US Billboard Hot 100[45] 69

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Australia (ARIA)[46] Platinum 70,000^
Ireland (IRMA)[47] Platinum 15,000x
New Zealand (RMNZ)[48] Gold 7,500*
United Kingdom (BPI)[49] Silver 200,000^
United States (RIAA)[50] Platinum 1,000,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone

Release history

Region Date Label Format Catalogue
United States 8 December 2007[51] Sire Records Digital download
15 April 2008
13 May 2008 (Re-release)
August 2008 (2nd re-release)		 Airplay
Australia 8 December 2007 CD, digital download 9362498882
Chile[52] Digital download
France[53] 30 March 2009 CD, digital download B001TEKHBI
Ireland 22 May 2009
UK[21] 25 May 2009

Chart procession and succession

Preceded by
"Number 1" by Tinchy Stryder ft N-Dubz		 Irish singles Chart number-one single
11 June 2009 – 18 June 2009 		Succeeded by
"When Love Takes Over" by David Guetta featuring Kelly Rowland

References

  1. ↑ Pascua, Michael (14 January 2009). "The Veronicas: Hook Me Up". TheCelebrityCafe.com.
  2. ↑ Lyonnais, Sheena (28 January 2009). /the-veronicas-%E2%80%94-hook-me-up "The Veronicas – Hook Me Up". CHARTattack.
  3. ↑ "The Veronicas - Untouched (Video)". YouTube. Retrieved 2012-05-25.
  4. ↑ "Untouched on 90210". The Veronicas. 9 February 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
  5. ↑ Hook Me Up (liner notes). The Veronicas. Sire Records. 2007. 9362499154.
  6. ↑ Balls, David (18 May 2009). "The Veronicas - Music Interview". Digital Spy (Hearst Magazines UK (National Magazine Company Ltd.)). Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  7. ↑ Jones, Rachel (9 May 2009). "The Veronicas: Untouched And Unstoppable". Female First (First Active Media Ltd). Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 "Untouched: Digital Sheet music". Musicnotes.com. Alfred Publishing Company. Retrieved 28 April 2009.
  9. ↑ Staff (27 February 2009). "The Veronicas sell over a million units in the US". PerthNow. The Sunday Times. News Limited (News Corporation). Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  10. ↑ "The Veronicas' Hook Me Up - Album review of Hook Me Up by The Veronicas". Dancemusic.about.com. 2007-11-20. Retrieved 2012-05-25.
  11. ↑ K. Ross Hoffman (2007-10-01). "Hook Me Up [Bonus Track] - The Veronicas". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-05-25.
  12. ↑ Sawdey, Evan. "The Veronicas: Hook Me Up < PopMatters". Popmatters.com. Retrieved 2012-05-25.
  13. ↑ "The Veronicas: 'Untouched' - Music Singles Review". Digital Spy. 2009-05-09. Retrieved 2012-05-25.
  14. ↑ "Single Review: The Veronicas - Untouched". Femalefirst.co.uk. 2009-05-15. Retrieved 2012-05-25.
  15. ↑ "ARIA Charts - End Of Year Charts - Top 100 Singles 2007". ARIA Charts. Retrieved 30 January 2008.
  16. ↑ "Untouched - Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles". Billboard. Retrieved 29 June 2008.
  17. ↑ "The Billboard Hot 100 - The Veronicas Untouched".
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart".
  19. ↑ Cashmere, Paul (2009-02-26). "The Veronicas, One Million Americans Touched By Untouched". Undercover.com.au. Retrieved 2012-05-25.
  20. ↑ "Chart Stats - The Veronicas - Untouched". Retrieved 20 May 2010.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Balls, David (25 May 2009). "The Veronicas: 'Untouched'". Digital Spy.
  22. ↑ "Watch out for the hot new video for UNTOUCHED". theveronicas.wordpress.com. Retrieved 1 February 2008.
  23. ↑ "The Veronicas' "Untouched" First Look on MTV". fanbolt.com. Retrieved 26 July 2008.
  24. ↑ "The Veronicas Invade MTV". medolic.net. Retrieved 26 July 2008.
  25. ↑ "The Veronicas- Untouched _ live at Aria Music Awards 2008". YouTube. 2008-11-29. Retrieved 2012-05-25.
  26. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – The Veronicas – Untouched". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  27. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – The Veronicas – Untouched" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  28. ↑ "Ultratop.be – The Veronicas – Untouched" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  29. ↑ "The Veronicas Album & Song Chart History" Canadian Hot 100 for The Veronicas. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  30. ↑ "The Veronicas Album & Song Chart History" European Hot 100 for The Veronicas. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  31. ↑ "The Veronicas: Untouched" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  32. ↑ "Officialcharts.de – The Veronicas – Untouched". GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  33. ↑ "The Veronicas - Untouched - Music Charts". αCharts.us. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
  34. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – The Veronicas search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  35. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – The Veronicas – Untouched". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  36. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – The Veronicas – Untouched". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  37. ↑ "Veronicas: Artist Chart History" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  38. ↑ "The Veronicas Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot 100 for The Veronicas. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  39. ↑ "The Veronicas Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Pop Songs for The Veronicas. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  40. ↑ "ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Top 100 Singles 2007". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2011-01-08.
  41. ↑ "ARIA Charts - End Of Year Charts - Top 100 Singles 2008". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
  42. ↑ "Éves összesített listák - MAHASZ Rádiós TOP 100 (súlyozott)". Mahasz. Mahasz.
  43. ↑ "RIANZ Annual Top 50 Singles Chart 2008 (see "2008 – Singles")". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
  44. ↑ "Charts Plus Year end 2009" (PDF). Charts Plus. Retrieved 2010-07-19.
  45. ↑ "Hot 100 Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  46. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2008 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  47. ↑ "Irish single certifications – The Veronicas – Untouched". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  48. ↑ "New Zealand single certifications – The Veronicas – Untouched". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  49. ↑ "British single certifications – The Veronicas – Untouched". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 19 September 2014. Enter Untouched in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Silver in the field By Award. Click Search
  50. ↑ "American single certifications – The Veronicas – Untouched". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 19 September 2014. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH
  51. ↑ iTunes. Apple.com. Retrieved 3 April 2008.
  52. ↑ Bazuca. Bazuca.com. Retrieved 1 March 2009.
  53. ↑ "The Veronicas, Untouched Un clip Electro-Pop-Rock australien éblouissant". Loisirados.com. Retrieved 2012-05-25.