Strict Machine

"Strict Machine" is an electronic dance song written by British group Goldfrapp and Nick Batt for their second studio album Black Cherry (2003). It was produced by Goldfrapp and describes laboratory rats in neuroscience experiments.Alison Goldfrapp read in a newspaper about experiments in which scientists stimulated rats' brains so that the rats would feel joy when following commands. She was inspired to write "Strict Machine" based on images of the experiment and "more human aspects of machines and sex and control."

Wonderful Electric, Goldfrapp's concert tour DVD in support of Black Cherry, was named after lyrics in the song.

Release and reception

The song was released as the album's second single in July 2003 (see 2003 in music). It received a positive reception from music critics and became the band's second single to appear in the top thirty on singles charts in the United Kingdom. In May 2004, the song was re-issued and became Goldfrapp's first top twenty single in the UK. In the United States, "Strict Machine" was released to success on the Billboard dance charts, where it reached the top position on the Dance Club chart and number three on the Hot Dance Singles Sales chart. The song won the dance award at the 49th Ivor Novello Awards.