W.I.T. - Whatever It Takes (2003)

W.I.T. (short for Whatever It Takes) were queens of the Electroclash movement in the early 2000s. Electroclash, which is considered electro music with punk attitude, was basically the brainchild of DJ/producer Larry Tee. He had a love of 80s electro, new wave and synth-pop music and saw it as something that demanded a comeback, albeit with an updated sound. At the time there were many acts emerging, like Felix Da Housecat, Peaches, Chicks On Speed and Fischerspooner, who were working the Electroclash sound. Many of the acts at the time we fairly faceless or visually 'challenging'. After being approached by model Melissa Burns to put her in a group called W.I.T., Larry realized that an attractive electro girl group would be just the ticket to get attention for the genre, the Electroclash Festival and his label Mogul Electro. He convinced another attractive lady, Christine Doza, to join and they recorded the song "Hold Me, Touch Me". Luckily he got the legendary Arthur Baker to remix the track and it took off in dance clubs, and was included in many Electroclash compilations. The ladies toured with the Electroclash Festival and recorded more songs that ended up on compilations, including "Inside Out", which appeared on the Party Monster soundtrack. Along the way they added a third member, Mandy Coon, more for eye candy than anything else as she apparently didn't sing on the tracks. Finally, in 2003, the previous tracks and a couple new ones, including a remake of The Cars' "Just What I Needed", were pulled together for their debut album, which was produced by Larry Tee. Though they had received plenty of media coverage, the Electroclash movement was arguably coming to a very quick and painful demise (I say arguably because many groups from that era are still recording and successful now) and W.I.T. failed to break out of the pack. Only two other known songs, "Boy's Club" and "Bad Idea", were released on compilations and the group apparently disbanded. It's a shame, as the group harkened back to classic electro girl groups like The Flirts and Company B, with influences from everyone from Stacey Q to Blondie, and their sound is currently successful for acts like Sally Shapiro and Annie. But it appears both Melissa and Mandy are currently involved in modelling and fashion, so their moment in the spotlight isn't likely over yet.

Download Whatever It Takes

1		I Surrender
2		Ooh, I Like It
3		Hold Me, Touch Me
4		It Kills
5		Just What I Needed
6		Playboy
7		Whatever It Takes
8		Inside Out