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Listening to mainstream and pop clichés on the radio sometimes makes me seasick. So when Walk the Moon released a single reminiscing on that disco feeling, joy flowed through my veins, because “Shut Up and Dance” is definitely one of the best songs of the summer.
Peaking at number four on the Billboard Top 100 and residing on the top ten charts of other countries, “Shut Up and Dance” is the band’s biggest hit single to date and is from their latest album, Talking is Hard. Inspired by the personal experience of frontman Nicholas Petricca with his girlfriend, “We were at the bar and it was taking forever to get a drink, there was great music playing and I wanted to dance out there. My girlfriend was like ‘Shut up and dance with me.’ And then poof! a song was born.”
For Walk the Moon, the 80s are very much alive. Synthesizers and rock guitar meets upbeat and catchy melodies, so get ready to have some fun when you listen to “Shut Up and Dance.” It is by far one of the best songs that I have heard on the radio airwaves in awhile. With its massive chorus over soaring electronic guitar, everyone who hears this will have their own whimsical love affair with the dance floor. Maybe it’s just a cultural amnesia that makes this song familiar, but the retro vibe really puts me in the mood to whip out a can of hairspray and start singing. The important thing is that feeling of being alive and seizing the moment.
The passion that Petricca puts into his voice is brilliant. Starting with back-and-forth conversation, then convincing himself their connection is nothing less than fate takes the listener on a journey: “Oh don’t you dare look back / Just keep your eyes on me / I said ‘you’re holding back’ / She said ‘shut up and dance with me.'” Those lines from the chorus are anthemic and simple, and that’s what makes this song the right mix for those who are looking for love, or at least, someone to love for the night.