Love Machine (песня Girls Aloud)

2004 single by Girls Aloud

"Love Machine" is a song recorded by British girl group Girls Aloud from their second studio album, What Will the Neighbours Say? (2004). It was released by Polydor Records on 13 September 2004, as the second single from the album. The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, Tim Powell, Nick Coler, Lisa Cowling, Myra Boyle, and Shawn Lee. The instrumentation was inspired by The Smiths, and created by Powell and Coler. "Love Machine" is an uptempo pop rock song with elements of 1980s synthpop. The single was received favourably by contemporary music critics, who deemed it a joyful track that was different from the single releases by other artists at the time. According to research carried out for Nokia in 2006, "Love Machine" is the second "most exhilarating" song ever. "Love Machine" debuted and peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart, continuing the band's string of hits by becoming their sixth consecutive single to chart within the top three. The song also peaked inside the top ten in Europe and Ireland. The accompanying music video was directed by Stuart Gosling, and portrays the five members in a nightclub/restaurant scene dancing and sipping champagne whilst singing their song. Girls Aloud performed "Love Machine" on all of their tours and on several live appearances, including at Disney Channel Kids Awards, TMF Awards 2005, and at The Girls Aloud Party TV special in 2008.

Following a brief hiatus, Polydor Records enlisted Brian Higgins and Xenomania to produce Girls Aloud's second album in its entirety, following the success of their debut album Sound of the Underground. Higgins explained that Polydor were not going to continue with the group's contract unless he produced songs for the album. He continued, saying that his initial reaction was that he thought he would only be required to produce a couple of songs, however Polydor insisted that he produce the album in its entirety and that they thought only he understood what they wanted. Bandmate Nicola Roberts said that "Love Machine" was recorded in 18 parts over three days. Kimberley Walsh and Nadine Coyle in particular voiced their disapproval of the single release, Coyle stating it would be "career suicide" and that she thought the group would be known as laughing stocks if the song came out. However, despite an "embarrassing" meeting between the label and the girls, "Love Machine" was picked as the second single from What Will the Neighbours Say?, being released on 13 September 2004. For the sleeve of the second CD, Artwork design group Form invented five fake magazines, one for each member, and used "Love Machine" lyrics as the headlines. which had been initially considered to be released as the lead single of the album. The Gravitas Disco Mix of "Love Machine" was also included. The maxi CD also included a task based game, created by design agency Holler. The 7" picture disc included the radio edit and Tony Lamezma Remix of "Love Machine". Cheryl Cole later stated that despite her initially hating the song, that the success of the single taught the group that they were not always right regarding single decisions and that they needed to listen to their label from time to time.

The track received generally favourable reviews from music critics. Alexis Petridis of The Guardian considered "The Show" and "Love Machine" as the "perfect examples of Xenomania's uniquely rousing approach to pop," adding that the latter "sounds, incredibly, like the Smiths' Rusholme Ruffians colliding head on with that band's musical nemesis, chirpy 1980s synth pop." A reviewer for Virgin Media stated the song's "bouncy drums, perky guitars and ditsy lyrics will probably cause a seizure," and commented further, saying that "it sounds so unlike anything else in the charts right now proving once again that they're still one of the most exciting bands in pop right now." The song was a Track Pick from the Allmusic review of What Will the Neighbours Say? by Sharon Mawer, A BBC Music critic, however, called it "upbeat but not particularly tuneful". According to research carried out for Nokia in 2006, "Love Machine" is the second "most exhilarating" song ever, after "Song 2" by Blur. Billboard named the song #65 on their list of 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time.