Enrique Iglesias ft. Nicole Scherzinger - 'Heartbeat'
You're familiar with the fable about the sun and the wind, right? The one where they have a bet about which of the two of them is the more powerful, and they choose to prove their mettle by trying to get a man's cloak off.
If you're not sure, it goes like this: the wind blows hard and long, trying to prise the cloack from the man's clutching hands, but he pulls it tightly around himself, to keep warm. In the end, it's the sun that wins the day, by beaming down upon the man with such warmth that he has to take his cloak off, cos he's all hot and bothered.
There is something of that story to this song. Rather than huff and puff about doing sexy stuff all night long, as if love is an olympic sport, Enrique and Nicole coo gently to each other. Instead of groaning and rasping, they sing, sweetly. And instead of making huge claims about the astonishing things they are capable of in a bedroom, they simply and calmly explore a few different ways to express that it is nice to feel so connected to someone, that you can feel your pulse integrate with theirs.
Not that I'm getting hot and bothered, you understand. It's only a story.
(. It's all done with mirrors...and a projector.)
The music helps too. A rhythm which is little more than a woolly throb, and a simple piano motif and which continues throughout the entire song, like a kind of...y'know...actual pulse. That's neat, and makes this a superficially sexy sort of song which is actually more about the huggy, snuggly side of love, as opposed to the grunty, rubby aspect which can sometimes dominate the field of popular song. That, I approve of. For variety's sake if nothing else. And because it's cute.
On the other hand, it would be nice if there was something more to this musically than that woozy warmth, the understated singing (to the point of whispering), the actual whispering and that blimming piano. Which doesn't get annoying at all, by the way. Not one bit. It's perfect for the job in hand and is used sparingly and well. I can't get enough of it, truth be told. It should be in the song MORE, actually. In fact, I'd be happy if the song consisted of nothing but that piano motif and Nic and 'Rique repeating that "I can feel your heartbeat, she said to me" over and over, and over, and over. AND OVER.
Repetition is a wonderful thing, but you can overdo it.
I said repetition is a wonderful thing, but you ca- oh never mind...
Download: Out now
´óÏó´«Ã½ Music page
(Fraser McAlpine)
"When the track first leaked you could tell there was a good chemistry between Enrique and Nicole, but now that the video is out this amps everything up to the next level."
"The song is somewhat catchy, but what is with the whisperings of Nicole Scherzinger?"
Comment number 1.
At 1st Oct 2010, RandomEnigma wrote:I surprisingly like this song very much. I think both Enrique and Nicole bring the right amount of vulnerability to their vocals here and you can't deny that they make an attractive duo. I think it's a far more effective '90s inspired dance ballad than, say The Saturdays' 'Missing You'. Plus Enrique is completely forgiven for the monstrosity that was 'I Like It'.
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Comment number 2.
At 2nd Oct 2010, sweety_boy wrote:this is amazing song from two goos singers... love them
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