Groove Armada, Mutya Buena
Song 4 Mutya

Will someone please give* Mutya Buena a prod from me, and remind her that’s she’s a popstar? On every track she’s been involved with since her departure from Sugababes, the mother-of-one has done a fine job of filling her vocals with all the joyousness of discovering your favourite pet eaten by a rogue Alsatian upon arriving home from a _really_ bad day at the office. _‘Song 4 Mutya’_ finds her phoning in her lines without a shred of emotion, while coffee-table / cocktail-party dull-dance duo *Groove Armada make with the pretty beats and pieces. You’d have thought, what with that title, she’d make an effort at sounding happy at having such a wonderful career right now.

Buena has great songs in her – you can feel it, more and more, with each so-so offering she unleashes unto the charts. Groove Armada? Well, they’re washed up, aren’t they? ‘Song 4 Mutya’ is a long way, compositionally, from their high watermark of the sumptuous ‘At The River’, now ten years in the past. Their time’s gone – see ya! – but Buena can build on this; she can become just as special a pop act as the band she left behind continue to be, albeit increasingly erratically.

If only she’d smile a little at her situation – like she does in the video below, however falsely – and embrace her potential with open arms rather than a coy reservation.