At the beginning of their allegedly self-made video for “One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks)” the members of globally dominant British boy band phenomenon One Direction explain that the song was recorded to benefit the British charity Comic Relief. Which is great. Charity work is laudable, and honestly there should be benefit singles from ridiculously massive pop acts being released on a regular basis. But their brief explanation doesn’t even come close to touching on the biggest question that the song raises, which is why there is a One Direction version of the “Teenage Kicks” that now exists in our world.
Actually, it’s primarily a cover of Blondie’s “One Way or Another”—which the group has given a predictably energetic and likable rendition—with “Teenage Kicks” interpolated into the song’s booming, Joan Jett-style arena rock breakdown. Which somehow makes even less sense.