Time magazine says: "From Russia With Lust: Prefab controversy, prefab band — meet teen lesbian duo Tatu." The Age newspaper says: "They may be lesbian, they sing and they sell."

On Universal Music's Russian site, the Tatu girls say: "I, Julia Volkova, and I, Elena Katina, admit, that being under drinking age, we have been persuaded to take part in the girl-band called Tattoo by band’s future producer Ivan Shapovalov. As far as we know, before this band was made, Ivan Shapovalov never had anything to do with music business. He used to make TV commercials and do all kinds of advertising activities."

In another Universal Music press release, Katina says: "People love us or hate us but nobody thinks nothing about us." But to KEVIN MATHEWS, Tatu are the latest in sensational pop music marketing.

How low are record labels willing to go to drum up CD sales? You’d be amazed. With Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears looking more and more like strippers than singers, it was inevitable that the record industry would contrive to produce an pop act to appeal to the basest human instincts and not only that but to market it to impressionable children.

That act is Tatu, two Russian girls (no older than 18 years old) that can best be described as a paedophile’s perfect (wet) dream. In the video accompanying their current single — "All the Things She Said" — nothing is left to the imagination as the two girls, dressed in school uniforms make lesbian love to each other behind a backdrop of rebellion and forbidden fruit.

That this is exploitative and offensive is not even an issue but the promotion of lesbian paedophilia packaged as mainstream teen pop fodder is extremely irresponsible and highly dangerous. Yes, one cannot deny that sex appeal has always been part of the equation in rock ‘n’ roll but there is such a thing as going too far. Now it would appear that record labels will go to any lengths to sell CDs and that is outrageous, disturbing and tasteless.

But what about the music you ask?

Even if you ignore the patently disgusting concept behind the duo, the flaccid, soulless dance music — produced by Trevor Horn, no less — is an affront to pop music in general. Horn should know better. After all, the man behind the Buggles, Frankie Goes to Hollywood and the Art of Noise, knows how good pop can be, instead he produces crap to provide the soundtrack for the gratuitous trash that is Tatu.

I had reservations writing this commentary because I’m sure that my comments will only serve to increase the attention and curiosity level that Tatu will no doubt receive. However, since this attention will exist even if I wrote nothing, I felt the need to put my thoughts to paper. Let me make it clear — Tatu is a cynical exercise in exploitation and child abuse and should be avoided at all costs.