One of the best pop albums of 2002 wasn't released in the U.S. If that's not dropping the ball, then what is? An assured and durable follow-up to 2001's formative One Touch, which still packed a number of singles that gave the group a great deal of success overseas,
Angels With Dirty Faces is a thoroughly convincing amalgamation of the artists they've been weaned on - from Madonna to TLC to Aaliyah - with a strong foothold in contemporary trends. A bootleg mash-up of Adina Howard's "
Freak Like Me" and Gary Numan's "Are Friends Electric" led to the group's own spin on the trick, and it landed them the top spot on the U.K. chart. Using a beefed-up arrangement of Numan's robotic new-wave tune, the
Sugababes lift Howard's forthright lyrics - somewhat sheepishly, the "pump pump" that precedes "all through the night" is subsumed in the mix - and weave the two elements together for a powerful and immensely catchy opening to the album. At no point during the remainder of the first half does the album lose steam. The verses of "
Blue" are backed by jutting electronic beats that stutter and twist, while the chorus unwraps a tempo shift carrying an unexpectedly strummy quality. "
Round Round", another hit that put the group on Top of the Pops, is something Garbage would no doubt love to have in their own catalog. Apart from a couple bum moments during the second half of the album - see "
Shape", a misguided re-configuration of Sting's "
Shape of My Heart", replete with a literally patched-on appearance from the man himself - this is a pop album that offers much more depth and excitement beyond the singles.
Angels With Dirty Faces review by allmusic.com