Overload

## **Overload**Single by Sugababes

"**Overload**" is the first track and debut single on Sugababes' debut studio album, One Touch. It was released on 11 September 2000 through London Records as the lead single from the album. The song was written by Sugababes members Siobhán Donaghy, Mutya Buena and Keisha Buchanan, and British songwriters and producers Paul Simm, Felix Howard, Jony Rockstar, and Cameron McVey.

The song was listed at 432 on Pitchfork Media's Top 500 songs of the 2000s. It received an overwhelmingly positive reception from music critics. The song was nominated for "Best British Single" at the 2001 BRIT Awards and later inspired the title of the group's greatest hits compilation *Overloaded: The Singles Collection*.

## Background

"Overload" was created in the rooms of Mayfair Studios in Primrose Hill. The Sugababes were running between two rooms with Matt Rowe's with "more poppier stuff", and Cameron McVey's room writing "Overload". In a 2021 *The Guardian* interview, Siobhán Donaghy described writing the song as "pretty organic, everyone adding lyrics and melodies" and defines the song is a coming-of-age tale. McVey took parts of the girls' conversations during their sessions, encouraging to share their experiences of everyday school life, their mates, and boys.

> I always loved the line: “I’m on overload in my head.” I feel like that is my life. I think a lot of people of my generation probably have undiagnosed ADHD, and I felt like that as a teenager, enormously. It’s something I thought would dissipate with the years, but it hasn’t, really.
>
> Siobhán Donaghy, The Guardian, 2021

The vocals of "Overload" was recorded on one take on a handheld mic. McVey told the girls that they'd come back to it and do it properly later which meant the girls recorded it as relaxed and full of raw emotion. Mutya shares it was hard to sing the song at first because of "that weird key at the beginning". In rehearsals, Siobhán would sometimes start too high or too low. Back then, Mutya would also cringe at singing during her solo middle eight section, which is the most intimate part of the song about a guy and a girl, but now it's her favorite.

### Reception

> Fucking hell, we created something so beautiful at such a young age. When I hear it, it’s like: "Grab a beer and get wasted".
>
> Mutya Buena, The Guardian, 2021

The girls's vocals were perceived as nonchalant and sarcastic. Mutya adds they were just normal teenagers, especially when she was still washing dishes at home when the song became a hit. Siobhán shares her amazement at the guitar solo since there was nothing like the song in during its release.

"Overload" received universal critical acclaim from music critics. NME regarded the song's quality as "hauntingly infectious", and praised the track as irresistible and radio-friendly. The Portland Mercury also considered the song irresistible, and applauded its "snappy pop harmonies" and "jazzy dance beats". Sydney Morning Herald called the track "disarmingly sophisticated". Cameron Adams of Herald Sun wrote that "Overload" is one of the group's "finest moments", and reflected upon this as to why the song does not resemble those released by other girl groups. The Observer's Kitty Empire called the song a "brilliant" hit with "unexpected class", and cited it as the starting point of the Sugababes' "course to stardom".

Digital Spy considered "Overload" one of the best debut singles by a British girl group, whilst it also made NME's Year End Top 10 Singles for the year of 2000. Pitchfork included it at number 432 on their Top 500 Tracks of the Decade list in 2009. In October 2011, NME placed it at number 51 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years". In 2014 they included it at number 493 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

### Release and performance

"Overload" was released as a first single in September 11th 2000, with London Records' head Tracy Bennett sending a seven-inch white label to Radio 1. The song entered the UK Singles chart at number six on 23 September 2000. The following week, it dropped to number nine for two consecutive weeks, and eventually spent a further five weeks on the chart. "Overload" has sold approximately 160,000 copies in the United Kingdom, ranking it as their ninth best-selling single. In Ireland, "Overload" debuted at number 25 and reached its peak of number 15 five weeks later. It was the group's only single from the One Touch era to reach the top-twenty in Ireland.

"Overload" was a chart hit song across Europe, ranking high in the charts and staying for ample amount of weeks. In Austria, "Overload" peaked at number 3 in their singles chart. In Germany, the song debuted at number four and reached number three two weeks later. The song managed to spend six weeks in the chart's top-ten, and was certified Gold by the Bundesverband Musikindustrie, denoting shipments of 250,000 copies of the single. "Overload" reached number five in Switzerland, peaked number 12 in Netherlands, a top forty song in Flanders and Wallonia regions of Belgium. The song reached number 21 in Sweden "Overload", a number 2 New Zealand, and number 27 in Australia.

## Track listing

CD Single
1. Overload (Original Edit) - 4:35
2. Lush Life - 4:32
3. Overload (Capoeira Remix - Vocal Version) - 8:06
4. Overload (Instrumental) - 4:19

Vinyl Single
1. Overload (Capoeira Remix - Vocal Version)
2. Overload (Nick Faber Mix)
3. Overload (City Slickers Remix)

2021 Limited Edition CD
1. Overload (Radio Edit) - 4:12
2. Lush Life - 4:43
3. Overload (Capoeira Remix - Vocal Version) - 8:09
4. Overload (Nick Faber Mix) - 6:47
5. Overload (City Slickers Remix) - 6:30
6. Overload (SMD Remix) - 4:34
7. Overload (Capoeira Twins Disco Overload) - 7:57
8. Overload (Instrumental) - 4:19

## Personnel

* Arranged By [Turntable Arrangement] – Skilz 1 SMD
* Bass – Jony Rockstar
* Beats, Programmed By, Percussion – Jony Rockstar
* Engineer [Recording And Mix] – Goetz Botzenhardt
* Guitar – Chris Watson, Felix Howard
* Keyboards [Additional Keys] – Cameron McVey
* Piano, Keyboards [Keys] – Paul Simm
* Producer, Mixed By – Cameron McVey, Jony Rockstar, Paul Simm
* Written-By – McVey, Howard, Lipsey, Keisha Buchanan, Mutya Buena, Simm, Siobhán Donaghy

## Music video

The music video for "Overload" was directed by Phil Poynter and filmed in London, England in August 2000. The video has no plot and is known for its fresh and simplistic style, a theme that they would continue in their early videos. It features the group in a variety of ever-changing outfits, singing the song in front of a plain white background, either by themselves or together as a group.

## Remixes

Sugababes has officially released eight remixes for "Overload". In the single CD release in 2000, it contained a vocal remix by Capoeira Twins. In the single vinyl release, it contained the same remix by Capoeira Twins but was added with two more remixes from Nick Faber and City Slickers . In the 20 Year Anniversary limited edition of the single, the song contained the "SMD remix" and the "Capoeira Twins Disco Overload" remix. In the 20 Year Anniversary edition of *One Touch*, "Overload" has gathered three remixes from artists Majestic, Metronomy, Tatyana, and Ed Case.

## Trivia

* The song features on the soundtrack to the 2001 film *High Heels and Low Lifes*, directed by Mel Smith, and the 2002 film *40 Days and 40 Nights*, directed by Michael Lehmann.
* English indie pop band Bastille covered the song for the soundtrack of the 2015 film *Kill Your Friends*.
* In the 2000 Europe single CD cardboard sleeve, the cover photograph is credited to Laurie Bartley  while other versions are credited to John Spinks.
* In her 2020 Youtube video blog, Keisha Buchanan shares that since they both didn't get along in the prior days, she and Siobhán felt awkward in the recording of the video.
* On the record, Mutya does not sing on the chorus but Siobhán (higher) and Keisha (lower) were.
* Mutya's adlibs at the end of the song weren't defined despite the official lyrics published. In a comment thread on her Youtube video, Buchanan replies that the girls have been "trying to figure out for years".

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "‘My God, we were mobbed so much!’ – how we made Overload, by Sugababes". The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2021/oct/11/mobbed-how-we-made-overload-sugababes-moody-teenager
2. ↑ 2000, Single CD. Discogs. https://www.discogs.com/release/933950-Sugababes-Overload
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 2000, Vinyl. Discogs. https://www.discogs.com/release/153122-Sugababes-Overload
4. ↑ One Touch. Discogs. https://www.discogs.com/release/796820-Sugababes-One-Touch
5. ↑ Europe CD Cardboard Sleeve. Discogs. https://www.discogs.com/release/477100-Sugababes-Overload
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "REACTING TO MY FIRST MUSIC VIDEO|OVERLOAD- SUGABABES EDITION" @keishabuchanan8327. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faixmgvBFGE
7. ↑ "REACTING TO MY FIRST MUSIC VIDEO|OVERLOAD- SUGABABES EDITION" @keishabuchanan8327's comment. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faixmgvBFGE&lc=UgxxUadzz2Ih1nwFJHZ4AaABAg.9DfVbIfExci9DhQrRn-361

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