"I wonder what your boyfriend thinks about your braces?"

Great pop lyrics don't have to mean anything. In fact, it's better when they don't.

Which of these phrases better evokes the limitless frontiers of the human experience: "I Am The Walrus, goo goo ga-choo" or "I-I-I-I-I Will Always Love You"?

Would you rather live is a world where people say "I'm wearing all my favourite brands, brands, brands" or one where Kimberly Walsh purrs "let's go eskimo"?

Have you ever, like Katy Perry, felt like a plastic bag?

I rest my case.

The quote at the top of this article is from a song called Rill Rill by Brooklyn duo Sleigh Bells (who've been in the studio with Beyoncé this week). Their album, Treats, is 40 minutes of bonkers noisepop, crammed with lyrical non-sequiturs and thrilling riffs. Mostly, it sounds like Concorde crash-landing on a field of wasps - but on Rill Rill they reign in the distortion for three minutes and go all sexy.

At least, I think it's supposed to be sexy. There's a blissed-out, post-coital allure to singer Alexis Krauss' vocals - but she's singing about weathermen, fist fights and tarot cards.

The kitschy video, which appears to have been directed by Robert "Grindhouse" Rodriguez, doesn't shed any light on the song's meaning. But it does feature a bleeding telephone, which is something.

Sleigh Bells "Rill Rill"


If Beyoncé's next album sounds anything like this it will be amazing in capital letters.

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