[9/10]
Pop music has been in a sorry state for the last 18 months with the landscape being a mess of commercialized rubbish. Nothing has really shaken up the genre and therefore it had lost all excitement, however things may be changing for the positive. This is because Pitbull’s newest single is a breath of fresh air. The new single ‘Timber’ is off his latest EP Meltdown and the first thing that strikes you about the song is the extreme catchiness of it.
The opening of the song has a very country music vibe to it with the harmonica combined with piano chords and a steady background clap that instantly makes you want to tap your foot in time with the song. Ke$ha, who often has her critics, does add another layer to the song mainly due the chorus being sung exclusively by her; the feminine vocals are a good contrast to the harsher rapping. The mix between the singing and rapping is reminiscent of metalcore with the mix of screaming and singing, both of which when done well can be a huge success. You are first introduced to Pitbull in the first verse, where his rapping abilities are apparent and you can see why he is a man in demand, having done songs with everyone from Ne-Yo to Christina Aguilera. The rap is clever and his flow is impressive. It is pretty obvious from the opening seconds of the song that the title ‘Timber’ is an innuendo about something else than about cutting down trees… The theme of sex is continued throughout the first verse and the bridges, with the second verse being the standard rapper brag about how awesome their lives are. However the song’s lyrics demonstrates the over-sexualisation of pop music in recent times and the song encouraging drinking, it isn’t hard to see why there is such a drinking culture in today’s youth. While it is a shame in a way, it is so common place that most listeners shrug it off without a second thought.
However don’t let the lyrics detract you from the song, pop music is rarely known for its deepand meaningful lyrics – ‘Timber’ successfully does what all good pop songs should make you do; it makes you want to sing and dance. This is a song that will come on in clubs throughout the next few months and people will go crazy for it. It is easy to see why the track went to number 1 in over 20 countries and will no doubt be on many summer playlists. With a new album dropping sometime in 2014, it will be exciting to see if Pitbull can match the high bar he has set here.
Sam Taylor
