Planet Jedward

Album Review

Jedward laugh in the face of propriety, or they would if they had any idea what it was. Jedward live on a planet where proper decorum is an alien notion, a planet constructed from the debris of MTV, a planet where ancient history is "Pop Muzik." Jedward, a pair of twin brothers from Ireland who made a splash on X Factor by being the sand in Simon Cowell’s tight T-shirt, don’t care much for pop music; they’ll sing whatever comes their way as long as it makes them pop stars. So, the diabolical minds behind their debut — named Planet Jedward because they do truly seem like aliens — feed them a candy string of junk hits and classics, latching on an inspired mash-up of “Under Pressure” and “Ice Ice Baby,” stealing Backstreet Boys tunes, and tweaking any old punker who happens upon this platter by singing the Undertones’ classic “Teenage Kicks.” There’s no way that Jedward know the tune or what it means to a certain generation but that’s the kick of this record: it’s by and for a generation that does not know and does not care about any of this.