Track of the Day: 'Who'd Have Known'

I grew up around eccentric Latina matriarchs whose preferred method of greeting younger sistren was giving our outer (generally outer, though we can't always demand anatomical precision from cataracts and their owners) thighs a firm, loveless squeeze; if my father spots a Victoria's Secret Semi-Annual Sale while I'm away, he will buy me a convertible bra or three; I own a violently-tempered dwarf rabbit named Lolita. The line between what most people creepy and I find cute is nebulous, meaning I am basically Lily Allen's target demo.

Lily's catalogue presents us with a vision of love that skews towards the weird. "Littlest Things" paints an idyllic scene: wearing your boyfriend's boxers and T-shirt while watching DVDs in the bed you know hides his adorable stash of "dirty grotty magazines." "Not Fair" mourns the regrettably quiet tragedy of a good guy who is bad in bed. In the barn-themed music video, a rooster prances on the stage. Lily also neutralizes what would otherwise be unpalatably saccharine in "Who'd Have Known," a song about the sparkly first weeks of a new relationship. The song is saved from too-sweetness by its video, in which Lily Allen kidnaps Elton John to force-feed him pizza and watch videos of him with him (tape over mouth, rope around wrists.) The effect--remember Allen's history with John--is that of a gasp followed by a snort followed by a sigh followed by a smile, all of them Lily's trademarks.

On iTunes: Lily Allen / "Who'd Have Known"