Music Review: Little Mix "DNA"

Little Mix

DNA

Album: DNA

Year: 2012

               Perrie Edwards has sizzling chemistry with her boyfriend in the streaming  “DNA.”

              A chiming music box opens the single, setting a fairytale tone.  Edwards says he’s not like other boys in school. He has an instinctive nature to him, knowing exactly what to say.. His kiss reaches places she’d read in forbidden books hidden in her mom’s closet. His affection heats her skin, giving her a glow that he only can provide. (“Does he tell you he loves you/When you least expect it?/Does he flutter your heart/When he kisses your neck?/No scientist/Or biology/It's obvious/When he's holding me/It's only natural, that I'm so affected.”)

            In the pre-chorus, Jade Thrilwall says the physical connection has solidified, fusing together with the emotional. She can sense if he left school early. (“And my heart won't beat again/f I can't feel him in my veins/o need to question/I already know.”)

          In the chorus, from the warm smile on his face to his gentle nature, it’s what makes him who he is. He was destined to be an attractive man with a good heart. (“It's in his DNA, DNA/It's in his DNA/And he just takes my breath away/Breath away./I feel it every day/And that's what makes a man/Not hard to understand/Perfect in every way/
I see it in his face/Nothing more to say/It’s in his DNA.”)

           Jesy Nelson stares into his eyes, listening to the story they tell with blinks and watches as they widen as she sees the joy in his face after telling him about acing an test. It’s as though she can see herself through him, viewing what she can be with him fifteen years from now. His touch is etched in faint lines on her body, reminding her that she’s loved by someone. She’s had a few relationships but he is something unique. (“It's the blue in his eyes/That helps me see the future/Fingerprints/That leave me covered for days (yeah hey yeah)/Now I don't have/Any first degree/But I know/What he does to me/No need to worry/It feels so familiar.”)

            Thirlwall repeats the pre-chorus.

            They all sing the chorus again.

            The beats flash, leading to the bridge. Pinnock, her vocals short, says his kiss weakens her, making her system vulnerable to him. They were made for each other. He was raised to be a gentleman by his parents. Whenever he’s around, her heart begins to pound, thrashing against her body until she’s out of breath. There isn’t anyone else out there like him. He seems to be have been designed to be the perfect guy. (“There's something 'bout his kiss/Contaminates my lips/Our energy connects/It's simple genetics/I'm the X to his Y/It's the colour of his eyes/He can do no wrong/No he don't need to try/Made from the best/He passes all the tests/From my heart beating fast/It's cardiac arrest/He's from a different strain/That science can't explain/I guess that's how he's made/In his DNA.”)

          Operatic “ohs” follows with the music box accompiant. Written, it looks odd. However, it has to be heard. It’s a fantastic moment.

            The chorus is sung again to end the single.

           Little Mix’s vivid, full vocals are athletic, matching the grueling speed of the beats. It’s Edwards who stands out, though, defining the single with her booming voice. Nelson, however, falters halfway through her section, pausing on the last word of every lyric for that extra note, trying to steal Thirlwall’s job.

           The prime “DNA” is set to take off once it’s given a chance.