Your not-so-old earwig of the day is “Shut Up and Dance” by Walk the Moon. Released less than ten years ago, in 2014, it hit #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2014 and topped both the Alternative Songs and Hot Adult Contemporary charts. There’s good reason why—it’s a great tune, filled with catchy hooks (is that redundant?), a cool mix of power pop. synth rock, dance music, and 80s New Wave. It kind of reminds me of Fountains of Wayne when they’re reminding me of The Cars. Just listening to it makes me happy—and maybe, just maybe, get up and dance.
“Shut Up and Dance” was written by the band’s lead singer Nicholas Petricca and guitarist Eli Maiman. It seems that Petricca was at this party, and….
“We were at the bar, and it was taking forever to get a drink. I was frustrated because there was great music playing and I wanted to be out there.” Then his girlfriend, in “a backless dress and beat up red Chucks,” came over and asked him to dance with her. Hence the song’s title and the song itself, which Petricca described as an “anthem for the dork who is 100 percent me.”
Music-wise, the song shows what you can do with a simple I-IV-vi-V progression (in G) and a pentatonic melody. Really, it’s all you need to make a memorable tune. It worked for the Beatles, right?
“Shut Up and Dance” also has a great 80s-like music video that is attractive and clever and funny. If MTV were still a thing that played music videos they would’ve played this one every hour, on the hour. By the way, the girl in the video is not Petricca’s real girlfriend, as some have thought, but instead a professional dancer named Lauren Taft. She is wearing a backless dress and red Chucks, however.
The band Walk the Moon hails from Cincinnati, home of the best chili in the world. Lead singer Nicholas Petricca formed the band in 2006, taking the group’s name from the Police song, “Walking on the Moon.” They cite the Police, Tears for Fears, Phil Collins, and David Bowie as influences; all those ’80s influences give the group a very ’80s sound, which is why I feel justified in including “Shut Up and Dance” as a classic song, even though it’s only nine years old. It’s already become a staple at dances and wedding receptions everywhere.
Walk the Moon had some minor hits before and since, along with a large live following, but “Shut Up and Dance” is (so far, at least) their biggest hit. They’re still recording and performing today, having released their latest album, Heights, in 2021. Now quit reading this stupid blog—and shut up and dance!
