"Kiss That Grrrl" is a song by English

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and sub ...

singer-songwriter

Kate Nash Kate Marie Nash (born 6 July 1987) is an English singer-songwriter and actress. Nash launched her music career in 2005. Her 2007 single " Foundations" became a hit and brought her to public attention in the UK. Her debut album, '' Made of Bricks ...

, featured on her 2010 second album '' My Best Friend Is You''. Written by Nash and produced by

Bernard Butler Bernard Joseph Butler (born 1 May 1970) is an English musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the first guitarist with Suede, until his departure in 1994. He has been hailed by some critics as the greatest guitarist of his ...

, it was released as the second single from the album on 12 July 2010.

Track listing

B-sides

* " Great Big Kiss" is a duet with singer Billy Bragg and a cover, the original having been sung by

The Shangri-Las The Shangri-Las were an American pop girl group of the 1960s. Between 1964 and 1966 several hit songs of theirs documented teen tragedies and melodramas. They continue to be known for their hits "Remember (Walking in the Sand)", "Give Him a Gre ...

. The song has been performed at many gigs before this release. * "Song For Corrado" is Nash's first song entirely in another language. The song is sung entirely in

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Music video

The track's music video was released on 4 June 2010. The video evolves around Nash performing a dance, her backup dancers being two men (one of them Nash's boyfriend, ''The Cribs'' guitarist

Ryan Jarman Ryan James Jarman is a British musician who is the guitarist and vocalist with English lo-fi indie rock band the Cribs. The Cribs Jarman formed the Cribs in the early 2000s with his twin brother Gary and younger brother Ross. The band is know ...

, and the other being her close friend Wesley Goode who also appeared in the videos for "Pumpkin Soup" and "Do Wah Doo"). During the video, Nash is seen wearing several risqué outfits.

Lyrics

On 23 April 2010, Nash explained to ''

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'' magazine: "Kiss That Grrrl is about being in a relationship and going out and drinking, then arguing. Maybe you're being a d--k to your girlfriend, or you're a bitch to your boyfriend, and you know you're being mean because you can get away with it. And it's also about being in love with someone and knowing that if they ever cheated on you, you'd die." She told ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'': "These girl-group songs sound really joyous, but the lyrics are quite dark and heartbreaking." Nash also told ''Rolling Stone'' that the song was influenced by her recent obsession with the poetry of English confessional poet and punk blues musician

Billy Childish Billy Childish (born Steven John Hamper, 1 December 1959) is an English painter, author, poet, photographer, film maker, singer and guitarist. Since the late 1970s, Childish has been prolific in creating music, writing and visual art. He has le ...

Critical reception

Mayer Nissim of ''

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'' gave the song a neutral review stating:

Teasy title aside, 'Kiss That Grrrl' follows straight on from its predecessor rather than the delightfully riotous 'I Just Love...', reminding you of classic girl-fronted rock 'n' roll in the same way The Pipettes did a couple of years back. However, once you strip back the layers of homage/pastiche/influence, you're left with a classic Nash song about - what else? - being in a bickering couple and the simmering jealousy and self-doubt that underlines young love ("I don't like it how she makes you laugh so much / How when you're talking, that you touch"). It doesn't quite have the scope and grandeur of the music from the era that inspired it, but Nash fans should still love this, and a few newbies may even be snagged by the shiny, stylish production and solid pop hooks..

References

{{authority control 2010 singles Kate Nash songs Songs written by Kate Nash 2010 songs Fiction Records singles