We Started Nothing - Digipak

Both members of this U.K. pop duo -' singer-guitarist Katie White and drummer Jules De Martino -' used to play in second-tier teen-pop acts. Their earlier experiences clearly left them with harsh feelings about the music industry: De Martino has admitted that their thumping disco single 'Shut Up and Let Me Go' is a breakup song written for their former record label, not an old flame. But those formative years also gave them an instinct for industrial-grade pop hooks, which is probably why Apple selected 'Shut Up' for its recent iPod ad. On their full-length debut, the Ting Tings craft peppy New Wave that's relentlessly catchy: 'That's Not My Name' is a Toni Basil-style chant-along fueled by a punk-funk groove, 'Be the One' sounds like Blondie, and 'We Started Nothing' dresses up a ripping break beat in sumptuous soul horns. The Ting Tings toss in enough untreated guitars, grrrl-power lyrics and subsonic Moog blurts to give We Started Nothing a certain edginess. But it's just a front: An album that's as joyful as anything by Gwen Stefani or Kylie Minogue doesn't need indie cred. [rollinstone.com MICHAEL ENDELMAN]