Seeking Sophie

If the US has Britney and Australia has Kylie, the UK has Sophie Ellis Bextor. She's that country's erstwhile Pop/Dance princess who, like the first two names mentioned, grew up in the industry. From her sound to her sexiness, Sophie practically bloomed in public.

My first taste of Sophie Ellis Bextor was during my first visit to Europe. Bored in the middle of Rotterdam, I decided to wander inside a music store and just listen to CDs. Among those counted as the top releases was our very own pop wonderkid, Billy Crawford, and this very attractive woman named Sophie Elllis Bextor. Intrigued by the CD cover, i quickly picked up the headset and started listening to her tracks.

And, if I may quote Kylie, "it was love at first sight." (Or sound, if we'll get specific.)

The first song of hers that I loved was this dance track entitled "Murder on the Dance Floor." Aside from having that rhythmic thumpa-thump beat that will send your right feet stompin', your right hand tapping, and your head bobbing, the lyrics were also quite nice in a nonsensical kind of way. I wanted to buy the CD right there and then, but music costs so much in Euros! The same amount can get me a couple of decent shirts at Zara, so I decided to postpone buying it and just listened to the song over and over until I could memorize it.

Upon returning to the hotel, I quickly plopped on the bed and switched the channel to MTV. And there it was, the "Murder on the Dance Floor" MTV starring Sophie. If the song was fun to listen to, the video was just a joy to watch. It was this campy dance contest where she was sabotaging her opponents moves and taking them out of the competition one by one. By the end of the song, she was clutching the dance contest trophy and relishing in her victory. After that, I knew I had to buy her CD. And I eventually did.

Then I lost it. I don't remember where or when, but somewhere between Barcelona and Belgium, I lost her CD.

When I returned to Manila, I quickly checked Music One to see if they had her CD on stock. Alas, they didn't. I guess Sophie wasn't too big a star in Asia to merit a release here. A few years after, on a trip to Mexico, I saw her CD being sold in a C&A shop in Monterrey. Though I should have bought it, I didn't - and up to now, I don't remember why. Maybe it's because I was saving my money for Pull & Bear shirts, or mexican souvenirs.

Up to now, I still find myself checking out record stores - from the big chains like Tower and HMV, to smaller shops like HongKong Records or Odyssey - in the hopes of scoring a Sophie Ellis Bextor CD. Her videos are being shown in MTV Asia, from "Murder on the Dance floor" to her newer "I won't change you." Because of this, i'm hoping that she's finally penetrated the region and her music will be made available to Asian Sophie-liacs such as myself.

Well, it isn't there up until now. Good thing my colleague from Bangkok has a couple of her songs in his iTunes. Whenever I feel the need for Sophie speed, all I need to do is plug in and listen. But hopefully, HMV will start carrying her albums soon, so I can finally have my own copy.

If not, i'll make sure that during my trip to Europe next year, i'll bring home another copy of her CD. And this time, i'll be super careful not to lose it.