Music Review: Fifth Harmony "Sledgehammer"

Fifth Harmony

Sledgehammer

Album: Reflection

Year: 2014

            Camila Cabello’s heart races whenever she sees her crush in the                maturing “Sledgehammer.”

               Awed synths open the single, setting a breathless tone. The chorus opens the single. Her crush reaches over and opens the door for her. They lock eyes for a moment. She squeaks out a thanks. But she isn’t sure if it came out right from the sound of her pounding heart. (“If you could take my pulse right now/It would feel just like a sledgehammer/If you could feel my heart beat now/It would hit you like a sledgehammer.”)

           Whenever she gets a chance to talk to him, she remembers to ask him about his day and how he’s doing. But once she says goodbye, she has take a breath and take a moment to sit down to calm her nerves. Her adrenaline is going and she has to find some way to keep herself busy. She’s certain that he knows she likes him. (“I don’t admit it

I play it cool/But every minute/That I’m with you/I feel the fever and I won’t lie/I break a sweat/My body’s telling/All the secrets I ain’t told you yet.”)

                 In the pre-chorus, she has a difficult time hiding her emotions. (“I struggle to contain/The love that’s in my veins/And how it circulates.”)

             The chorus is sung again.

              In the second chorus, she says she can’t stop thinking about him. No one has ever made her feel so special. (“You’re taken over the beat of my body/You just don’t let up, don’t let up/You’re taken over the beat of my body/But you lift me up, lift me up/If you take my pulse right now/It would feel just like a sledgehammer.”)

              In the bridge, her Facebook status says “it’s complicated.” They are almost a couple but can’t seem to get it together yet. She wants to make out with him. (“So close together/So far apart/You’re turning me on/And my fire’s waitin’ for your spark.”)

                  The pre-chorus is sung again.

                  The first chorus is sung again.

                  The second chorus is sung again.

                   In the second bridge, she complimented him and touched his arm. He gave her a look that implied that he had been waiting for her to tell him. It’s gotten hard for her to keep it up bottled up inside. (“The truth is out/No stopping now/I’m getting closer/I’ve had enough/Undress my love/I’m coming over.”)

               An extended chorus is sung. (“If you take my pulse right now…It would feel just like a sledgehammer, hammer/If you take my pulse.”)

                    The first chorus is sung again.

                   The second chorus is sung again to end the single.

                  Fifth Harmony’s cohesive vocals are confident and more fleshed out. It’s notable in the underlying harmonies. With every single, the group is improving. It may be baby steps but it’s something.There has been trial and error (“BO$$”) but overall they have come a long way since their first single.

                   The  delectable  “Sledgehammer” has some 80s freestyle to it (the much underappreciated subgenre of the decade)  which does set them apart.