Customer Reviews

Planet Pop

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

ATC's success began with their first single "Around the World," which stayed seven consecutive weeks at no.1 position in German single chart (Media Control). The success of "Around the World" is in its mellow and pleasant Euro-sound, which made the single a huge hit not only at ATC's home of Germany by going triple gold (750,000 units) but also earning gold awards in several other European countries including Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, France. It did not take long for ATC to drop another hit single this time calling it "My Heart beats Like a Drum," which delivering similar type of soft Euro-sound found itself as high as no. 3 in Germany's single chart. Their complete album called "Planet Pop," is full of songs which are not only dancable like the first two singles but also are soft enough to listen to all day long one after another without getting tired a bit. Those who fell in love with ATC's first two singles "Around the World" and " My Heart beats Like a Drum" will also fall in love with the album "Planet Pop" because it contains tracks like "Why of Why," "So Magical," "Let Me Come Let Me Go" which sound very similar. The album mostly produced by Germany's King of Dance (Alex Cristensen) appeared in position no. 11 in its first week of release.

I thought maybe the most useful way to go through it is piece by piece, track by track... soo....

1) Introducing ATC --- Gives a good overture to the opening track... "Around The World"... sets the tone and the theme for the rest of the album, also... hear some cool accents!

2) Around The World (La La La) --- By far the best track on the album... this kind of Europop is common, but very rarely is it of this quality! Anyone who refutes the fact that this is TRUE dance music is a moron!

3) My Heart Beats... Like A Drum --- Similar enough to "Around The World" to prove that this is indeed the same band, but different enough, with more poppy feeling to give a new vibe.

4) Thinking of You: A slow, mid-tempo ballad... not one of my favorites because it's not very catchy. (not very danceable)

5) Until --- A VERY happy, upbeat dance track, full of sunshine!!!! :-)

6) Mistake No. 2 --- One of my favorites on the album... proves that mid-tempo, Britney-esque pop can be well crafted! Very, very catchy, and not something that everyone will say "Oh brother!" over.

7) Why Oh Why --- A darker dance track that features a similar vocal style (female though) to Eiffel 65's "Blue". On a scale of 1-10 for catchiness, this would be about a 7... not outstanding but good compared to other acts in the genre.

8) Without Your Love --- Very soft, slow-dance kind of track! Not a rockin' kind of mood here... but it is a very beautiful ballad with a good groove to it in it's own very slow way.(beautiful male vocals!)

9)So Magical --- Very catchy dance track, more of the "la dee dum dye" kind of lyrics here, memorize this one in a minute or less!!! Pretty good overall!

10) Notte D'Amore Con Te --- This is the one I've been holding my breath waiting for... an obligatory Latin-flavored track.... yuk! This trend has GOTTA stop soon! Not horrible, but the over-done-ness of this craze makes me sick! It by itself is an allright track, very catchy, but I've heard sooooo many like this!

11) Mind Machine --- Dreamy, trancy, dance pop... reminds me of sleeping on a cloud... throbbing rhythm, airy vocals... cotton candy for the ear!

12) Let Me Come and Let Me Go --- Another favorite one! Catchy, catchy, and MORE catchy! Not a boom-boom dance track, but very groovy in it's own right... great beat, great male vocals... (BTW... I don't usually like male vocals)... 10 out of 10!

13) Lonely --- Beautiful dance track, perfect for clubbing, cruising, or just wallowing... the lyrics are reflective of being lonesome... gorgeous catchy chourus! Great stuff here.

14) Lonesome Suite --- A minute-or-so long interlude that basically carries on where "Lonely" left off.. instrumental, no drums on this one.

15) Love is Blind --- Another mid-tempo ballad... this one really doesn't CLICK with me... I didn't find it overly catchy... not that great, but not horrible enough to give a failing grade. Very mediocre.

16) With You --- A repeat of the last one... very low on a beat, very un-catchy... of 100 I'd give it a 47 or so... kind of a dissapointing ending!

17) Heartbeat Outro --- No drums on this one... quite pretty, reflective, calming ending (as the last one is a bonus)... not a bad ending to the album. (short.. only about 1:12) (female vocals from "My Heart Beats Like A Drum" -- different notes, same words!)

18) BONUS: My Heart Beats Like A Drum International Radio Edit --- Since I loved the original version, I have no reason NOT to like this one... kind of repetitive considering that this is the 3rd time these lyrics have been used on the album, though...

In general, I absolutely loved this CD... well worth the $$$$$!! Catchy, and just deep enough for middle-of-the-road, placent mood... great to play when you're preoccupied with somethine else to do... it shouldn't distract you, but is interesting musically enough to aid! Give it a spin!

*****Essential Tracks***** --- "Around The World (La La La), "Mistake No. 2", "Let Me Come And Let Me Go", "Lonely", and perhaps "My Heart Beats Like A Drum"

ATC proves there more than "a touch of class" with their debut album "Planet Pop". ATC is a very talented group that knows how to sing and has a creative work team that writes their songs. Most of ATC's songs on this album are fast up-tempo dance songs but yet they offer great ballads as well. All of their voices collaborate great together in song like "Thinking of You" and many others. I hate the stereotype that Europe offers horrible music, because if that were true, I wouldn't like this CD and I have taste.

Track Listing:

1.) Introducing ATC (0.04) = This intro is a bit cheap, but who buys albums for their intro's and way.

2.) Around The World (La La La La La) (3:35) = This is the song that showed me that ATC has potential. This is a great Dance song, and is just irresistible. If you think the other songs on this album are similar to this one, that you need be thinking again, because this CD offers many classes of music.

3.) My Heart Beats Like A Drum (Dum Dum Dum) (3:43) = This track is by far my favorite song on this album, it features a great beat, catchy lyrics, and sweet vocals. I think the sweet child sounding repeats of the lyric "dum dum dum" is what catches my attention.

4.) Thinking Of You (3:42) = This is a ballad like song, however it still has a dance feeling to it, even though the beat is somewhat slow. This song features the vocals of all the members of the group, not just the lady`s.

5.) Until (3:49) = This song has a great dance beat, the lyrics are a bit weird, but who's complaining. I think the beginning of this song is kind of funky because one of the guys are singing and you can totally hear his accent, and when people sing they usually lose their accents.

6.) Mistake No. 2 (3:58) = The beat to this song starts off slow but than as it continues the beat picks up. To be truthful, I don't like this song much, there is nothing wrong with it, I'm just not feelin' it.

7.) Why Oh Why (3:52) = The beat to this song is really good, its something ya'll can dance to. This song somewhat reminds me of Eiffel 65 "blue", but it is not a rip off, it still remains its own song.

8.) Without Your Love (3:30) = This is one of the ballad songs on here, I'm not feelin' this track, its too Backstreet/Nsync for me. It's not a bad song, you may like it, its just not one of my favorites.

9.) So Magical (3:35) = This song has a good beat to it and the lyrics are pretty catchy, but there is nothing that really sticks out. This is a good song though, I'm feelin' it.

10.) Notte D'amore Con Te (4:01) = Don't ask me what the heck the song title means, but this is a great song with a good Latin like beat. This is a track I'm feelin', there is something unique about this song that catches my attentions. This is a great dance track, I think you'll be feelin' it to.

11.) Mind Machine (3:34) = This song has an incredible beat, it is dance friendly. I like this song because they did that robotic effect to their voices and its just incredible. This song sounds like it came right out of a video game, or space. This is another one of my favorite songs on this album, try it out, you'll see why I like this song.

12.) Let Me Come & Let Me Go (3:16) = This song has a rock like beat to it, I'm not really feelin' this song. This song has potential though, but its not one of my favorites, you may like it, everyone has different taste.

13.) Lonely (3:50) = This song has an incredible beat and is extremely dance friendly. This song has a catchy chorus that I'm really feelin`. You'll like this track. The beat changes along with their expressions in their voices.

14.) Lonesome Suite (1:08) = These are just extra beats from the previous track, I don't know what the purpose of these are, but its all good. Basically this track is 100% instrumental.

15.) Love Is Blind (3:02) = The beat and the lyrics to this song sound way to Britney Spearish, not that its a bad thing, its just something I'm not feelin'. The beat to this song sounds familiar, like its that of another. Maybe is a cover song?

16.) With You (3:45) = This song has a good aspiring beat, but there is a factor of this song that I don't like. The beat and vocals to this song sound like they are going to pick up as if it's the beginning of a song.

17.) Heartbeat Outro (1:06) = Basically this is like a ballad version of "My Heart Beats Like A Drum", that's all good since that is one of my favorite songs on this album.

18.) Bonus: My Heart Beats Like A Drum (Dum Dum Dum) International Radio Edit (3:56) = I have never heard of a radio edit that is longer than the original version that it's edited from. This is all good, because this song is so good it should be longer than what it is.

Add "A Touch of Class" to your ordinary life, and dance a little bit. Try this CD out you won't regret it, you'll be feelin' it. You can't beat 18 tracks, what do you lose there, your bound to like a majority of the songs on this album. Go buy this CD and help turn the world into "Planet Pop"

If it isn't, gee, you shure coulda fooled me! =)

Mind you, I ADORE cheesy-dancy-type European pop. That's why I laughed when I found out there are only 3 songs on this CD I think are good - in fact they're really good. But the rest are total crap! Honest!

OK, here's the breakdown, track by track:

01 oh come ON this is so dumb!!
02 great! this is their big hit YOU CAN'T NOT LOVE THIS!
03 some say it sounds the same as 02, but it's good on it's own
04-07 badvocal delivery bleh bleh blech
08 10 12 13 15 16 all are male vocal YUCK! (not that ALL male vocal is bad - just here it is)
10 wannabe latino what's with this? they sound like they're yelling, not singing! WE CAN HERE YOU FINE
11 i LOVE this song! shoulda been a single!
12 this is okay if you like BSB-ripoffs!
15 this is pretty good too - wait! that's cause they copied BoysIIMen!
16 this reminds me of a stupid song i made up in kindergarten on the swings SERIOUSLY and i'm a terrible singer/songwriter =)
17 O MY GOSH! and i thought track 01 was stupid! they took track 03, put 'baby's' in it, and gave it the tempo of 'smooth jazz' what a laugh!!!
the rest is just different versions of songs on the CD I think...

Okay, that said, I say listen to the previews, and if you agree with me that it's not worth the purchase, either get the singles for the ones you like (2&3 have singles) or download the tracks you like. There is much better European fluffy-pop, even if only a small portion is available in the U.S. I recommend Eiffel 65, Aqua, Sarina Paris, and even Ace of Base (they're aren't together anymore, and not too cheesy, but a great Euro-band!) same goes for ABBA, even tho they weren't big since the 70's, they started the Europop phenomenon which if you ask me ATC has horribly butchered.

Have a nice day! =)

When I first heard their sound I fell in love. I came upon it by accident, and and I know that it was a gift sent from above. I enjoy it, and I think that they will do extremely well here in America. Good luck to you, and I hope to be seeing more of you in the future.

-Josiah Pugh josiahpugh@hotmail.com

I bought this cd after hearing the track Around the World on the radio. I loved this song and thought it was great dance music. I bought the cd when it came out, but none of the other songs are half as good as Around the World. Other songs on this album have the same sound, but none are as sophisticated as the popular radio tune, and they make the album trashy. This cd is just another disc of euro pop, no different from any other European teen groups trying to make it big with mediocre music. If you like Around the World just buy the single and save your money for better dance music.

Planet Pop is a mixture of songs that will forever make you want to dance! If you enjoy Vengaboys or are into the Euro Dance Craze, this album is definately for you. It's a must for everyone. This album is packed with awesome tracks such as Around the World, My Heart Beats Like A Drum, Mistake No. 2, Why Oh Why, So Magical, and Mind Machine. Why miss out on the fun of owning Planet Pop? There is no need for hesitation when planning on getting this album. The vocals from Tracey, Livio, Sarah, and Joe are incredibly unbelievable. Get your copy of Planet Pop today! Don't waste any more time being without this album! You certainly won't regret getting a cd this full of awesome tracks, vocals, and beats!

Buy it and you'll see for yourself, ATC has the talent to become a major hit in the USA, i heard about them in Switzerland in June (2000) so just now they become famous in the USA. Buy it !!

ATC is simply incredible. I'm sure that anyone who's into europop has already listened to a few of their songs, so I'm just reiterating exactly how good ATC is.

From the beginning of europop, there were people who hated it, and there where people who loved it. There wasn't an in between. Thanks to ATC, europop now has the ability to convert people into loving it.

"Around The World (La La La La La)" needs to be listened to by everyone. It's the most played song in German radio history. This song is what converts people. I myself used to resent europop, but once I heard this song, I instantaneously became addicted with it. Soon, I found myself listening to every song by ATC. Eventually, I was where I am now, listening to every europop group that I can find. Unfortunately, I still haven't found anything as good as ATC's "Planet Pop [ENHANCED]".

If you are a Dance music fan living in the United States, it is probably pretty common that you never hear your favorite songs on Radio, or in music videos. Dance music is way too underrated here in the United States, and people who don't enjoy it are missing out. This cd is absolutely magnificent. While there are a few repetative songs that make you press the skip button such as "Without your love" which is your everyday Love Ballad that proves no point and sends no message such as every other song by Celine Dion and Barbra Streisand. Another boring song is "Notte D'Amore Con Te" which has the sound of "Livin' La Vida Loca" by Ricky Martin which everyone wishes this sound would just go away. Then the last is "Let Me Come and Let me go" which is one of those other "Backstreet Boys and N'SYNC" Wannabe songs, but lets not forget the good songs, which there is too many to name them all, so I will just give examples: "Around the world" which you've probably already heard, but if not, it is very dancy, and very catchy. "Thinking of You" with beautiful vocals, and fun 60's Eurodance backbeats, such as in the song "Cecilia" by Ace of Base. Another pleasure is "Mistake No. 2" which is a Love song with a whole new meaning, which every other love song says "I'll die without you" this one basically says "I am sad, but I will live." The best song on the album is by far, "So Magical", it is a beautiful Pop Gem, nothing like what you hear by Britney or Christina, this song is perfect for any mood you are in, it is a darker song with a fun beat to it, you can be virtually, a fan of any kind of music to enjoy this one. And to the last song I am going to explain "Mind Machine", which is a slower moving dance tune, but sends the same message that was sent in "So Magical." I reccomend you buy this album if you are a dance fan, it has something for everyone. If you are a fan of Amber, Aqua, Ace of Base, A * Teens, Backstreet Boys, or any of the other "Dance/Pop" Groups, you will Love ATC. It is well worth the money.