Rihanna

Avant-garde New Waver, auteur, and mastermind producer behind (heh heh) Coil's epically experimental Scatology, Marc Almond has likely been yearning lo these 25 years to become disassociated from the instantly recognizable snyth sample in 1981's fluke Soft Cell hit "Tainted Love." Rihanna, Jay-Z's teen prodigy from Barbados, grants Almond's wish as well as those of people eager for the first pop smash of the summer (usually delivered by Missy Elliott). Rihanna has a bit of an unfinished quality, and her vocals, while breathy, are in a pleasantly low register, giving "S.O.S" real quirk, and the solid sample ensures danceability.