Black Eyed Peas - Meet Me Halfway (single review)

Thanks to RandomEnigma for the heads up on this great new video from Black Eyed Peas. Meet Me Halfway is the third single to be released from the Peas' latest album, The E.N.D.

As a single, it's not what you expect from the group - it's very 80's and thankfully features Fergie's mighty vocals more than the last two singles. You have to agree, that girl has a great set of lungs. And although the guys from the group put in their vocal appearances, there's none of the usual swagger or overtly suggestive lyrics. It is - certainly for the Peas - quite a sensitive ballad.

Back to Fergie, arguably the focus of the song - I love the way she kind of drawls the vocals, managing to achieve a pleasant mix of longing and sensuality in her voice. The synths - as other bloggers have pointed out - give off a taste of polished 80's pop. Arjan described it as:

It such a fine-cut, guilty pleasure pop track with a super catchy synth riff. Fergie's vocals totally give me an '80s Madonna, '90s Gwen Stefani vibe. Just lovin' it.

I'm not sure though if the Madonna comparison is subliminal because of Fergie singing the lyric "right at the Borderline". Borderline is an old Madonna single, for those of you still in nappies.

The video is nothing short of epic - the three male Peas spread out around a fictional universe trying to reach Fergie, who is reclining sexily in some lush forest paradise. As the lyrics suggest, she implores them to 'meet her halfway' and eventually the four seem to reunite on a desert road as stars shooting from whatever locations they came from.

Though to be honest, the video's not the prize here - Meet Me Halfway is a beautiful song, dreamy and beseeching at the same time, but carrying the Black Eyed Peas' usual funky edge somewhere in the background. I don't think they've ever done a song like this before, which is proof that the group continue to grow creatively without ever alienating a single fan. Yes, that's how much I love 'em, I have nothing bad to say.