At last, it looks like we finally have an all girl R'n'B outfit who choose not to live in the shadow of Destiny's Child or TLC but say it loud and proud on their own terms. Mis-Teeq come complete with the ability to fuse two step with sassy vocals and deft yet surprisingly ruff an' tuff lyrical flows.
The single 'All I Want' is a perfect example of all their talents distilled into one track and injected with a fizzy pop sensibility. Sounding as fresh as ever its stabbing strings and crisp, urgent breaks are so infectious it could turn a pensioners tea dance into a writhing mass of overheated bodies.
On 'They'll Never Know' the girls trade verses with members of the mighty So Solid Crew with the greatest of ease proving that MC-ing isn't just for the boys. Featuring all the trademarks of a So Solid production with agitated keyboard jitters and depth charge bass quakes none of the crew's urban atmospherics are diluted for this predominantly pop flavoured album.
The deep disco funk of 'Nasty' is a butt shaking triumph and things get hot and steamy on the seriously sexy 'You're Gonna Stay'. The only real down point is the sickly 'These Days' which, with its softly strummed acoustic guitars sounds like a Gabrielle cast off.
That aside 'Lickin' On Both Sides' is a triumph showing that these three girls aren't so much Destiny's children but UK sisters doing it for themselves.
