One Direction – Made in the A.M Album Review

November 13, 2015November 13, 2015 MarcyB0yLeave a comment

Love or hate them, there is no denying One Direction’s footprint on and significance in Pop history. In a whirlwind five year career, they have won five Brit awards, four MTV Video Music Awards, cracked the U.S and smashed records all over the world. They have been without a doubt one of the most successful exports of the UK; the biggest band since The Beatles and Simon Cowell’s superlative product.

The release of fifth album ‘Made in the A.M.’ carries an assortment of emotions for a multitude of reasons. It’s the first without Zayn Malik since his departure earlier this year and it’s the band’s final album before their hiatus. Don’t be fooled into thinking the album has taken a slap-dash approach, however. It is quite the contrary; an enthralling amalgamation of tracks of different genres.

Overall, the album largely follows the same formula as previous One Direction albums. Songwriting duties are largely handed to long-term collaborators Julian Bunetta, Jamie Scott and Ed Drewett, with co-writing from all band members. Unlike previous albums, however, there is no material donated by superstar singer-songwriters. Members of McFly and Snow Patrol in addition to Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic & Ed Sheeran have all previously donated songs to the band but are noticeably absent from ‘Made in the A.M.’ Instead, the album is formed by a close-knit group of long-term One Direction songwriters.

Album opener ‘Hey Angel’ is a euphoric stadium-rock-influenced Pop track and is one of the best songs of One Direction’s career. It’s the band’s ‘Bittersweet Symphony’, comprised of rich orchestration, heavy stop-start percussion and is built around very few chords. ‘End of the Day’ captures similar levels of euphoria through an irresistible hand-clap Chorus. Lead single, The Police-influenced ‘Drag Me Down’ is still a powerful track with its funky reggae-styled bass riffs and its dubstep-informed chorus. Likewise, second single ‘Perfect’ is an emotive, anthemic track featuring reverberating sounds and punchy percussion whilst ‘Never Enough’ utilises a mesh of acapella vocals, a shuffling beat and Jack Johnson-like guitar strums before launching into a heavier chorus. Many elements are tossed into the mix including brass instruments, distorted synthesisers and Michael Jackson Dirty Diana-esque ‘Come on!’s’. ‘Olivia’ is another of the more enjoyable tracks from the album on which the One Direction lads have a whale of a time cramming as many syllables as possible into the verses. It’s the closest the band have come to imitating The Beatles musically and is effortlessly catchy. The band channel Fleetwood Mac on another of the album’s highlights ‘What a Feeling’, comprised of gorgeous layered harmonies and funky bass and guitar riffs. In fact, the band’s harmonies have never been cleaner and they play a significant role in the album’s success.

As always, the ballads form some of the album’s best moments. ‘If I Could Fly’ is a gentle ballad comprised of little more than a piano, cello and strings whilst ‘Infinity’ is a lovely rock-ballad which mimics Coldplay circa 2005, sounding uncannily like ‘Fix You’ during its explosive climax. The folk-infused ‘I Want to Write You a Song’ is beautifully simple and a lovely moment in the album. ‘Long Way Down’ is one of the album’s less commercial ballads but is a particular highlight. Led by gentle guitar strums, and Country-influenced wailing guitars with a low-key Chorus, it’s an exquisite addition to the album and is at times reminiscent of some of Robbie Williams and Guy Chambers’ best material in the late nineties. Another stand-out moment is found in ‘Love You Goodbye’, a track which opens tenderly with gentle piano chords & jittering synths before evolving into an emotive pop-rock ballad. It’s classic One Direction but captures far more maturity than their previous work. The weeping electric guitars which frame the second and third chorus is a beautiful addition and it is without a doubt one of One Direction’s best tracks.

Album closer ‘History’ is an enjoyable acoustic guitar-based track and whilst it rather bizarrely sounds like a Disney musical track, it closes ‘Made in the A.M.’ perfectly.

It’s clear the lads have used their influences and Pop heroes to shape the album. Michael Jackson, Jack Johnson, Coldplay, The Verve and Fleetwood Mac are just some of the artists mimicked but its this diverse range of influences which makes the album so rich in various genres.

The album is not quite as compelling as ‘Four’, but is a diverse and hugely enjoyable album nevertheless.

Rating: 4/5
Album Highlights: Hey Angel, Perfect, Long Way Down, Olivia, What a Feeling, Love You Goodbye.

‘Made in the A.M.’ is available now on Columbia/Syco records.

Carly Rae Jepsen – Emotion Album Review

September 25, 2015September 25, 2015 MarcyB0yLeave a comment

The sophomore album is always a challenging feat. Ask any artist and they will affirm that the second album is always the most testing. How do you follow up a successful début album, an introductory statement without recovering old ground or losing your audience altogether? Carly Rae Jepsen launched onto the music scene springier than a space hopper back in 2012 with huge guilty-pleasure ‘Call Me Maybe’ which remained in the charts (and our minds) for what felt like a lifetime. Whilst eventually a vexatious presence it was unarguably a slice of pop perfection and a triumphant launch onto the global music scene. Supporting album ‘Kiss’ was an enjoyable dance-pop album but one which failed to capture the enchantment ‘Call Me Maybe’ contained. Nevertheless, it was a commercial and critical success and one which secured Jepsen as the latest pop princess.

‘Emotion’ largely follows the same formula as ‘Kiss’; the focus is placed upon alluring hooks and uptempo dance-pop tracks which document escapades of puppy love. The primary difference however, is that Jepsen’s new material contains far greater substance. As is the latest trend, ‘Emotion’ draws heavily on 1980’s synthpop, Sia Furler’s writing credentials and a team of Swedish pop writers to formulate the perfect pop album. What ‘Emotion’ may lack in individuality, however, it makes up for in spirit and conviviality. Every track is meticulously programmed by some of pop music’s biggest producers (Greg Kurstin, Mattman and Robin and Shellback to name but a few) whilst Jepsen’s breathy and sultry vocals drift sedately atop. Every effect imaginable is tossed into the concoction – distortion, autotune, excessive reverb – but every ounce of effort is worthwhile; Jepsen has delivered an effervescent album abundant with catchy guitar riffs, breezy sound effects, and irresistible pop melodies.

Album opener ‘Run Away With Me’ is a model of things yet to come, plastered with detuned saxophone riffs, tight production, shuffling percussion, repetition and infectious melodies. It’s a fitting introduction; another teeny-bopper but its taut production gives it far greater substantiality. Lead single ‘I Really Like You’ remains as charming as on first listen whilst funky ‘Emotion’ comes dangerously close to becoming a direct rip-off of Haim’s ‘If I Could Change Your Mind’.

As is the case on all contemporary pop albums, Sia Furler is enlisted as songwriter on two tracks. The first, ‘Boy Problems’ is a fizzy affair, carrying levels of buoyancy Nile Rodgers would be proud of as Jepsen boasts that she ‘broke up with my boyfriend today and I don’t really care’. It shamelessly enters teeny-bopper territory again and is rife with sneering teenage girl ‘nah nah nah nah nah’s’. ‘Making The Most of the Night’ is a slightly darker effort in a similar vein to Sia’s own material, built around a tribal-influenced rhythm. Both tracks form just a handful of the album’s high points.

The 1975-esque ‘Let’s Get Lost’ is another of the album’s highlights, utilising funky guitar riffs, clinking synthesisers, and a feral saxophone appearance. Breezy harmonies are gorgeously layered, evolving into an exceptionally melodious chorus. It’s more infectious than than anything Jepsen has produced prior to this album and is crying out for a single release.

Elsewhere, ‘Emotion’ attempts to strike forward with a little more ferocity and variation. ‘LA Hallucinations’ explores hip-hop in a similar fashion to Taylor Swift’s ‘Bad Blood’ whilst ‘Warm Blood’ uses stomping percussion and fuzzy bass lines to great effect. Finale ‘When I Need You’, the most 1980’s influenced track by far with spaced percussion and shimmering bells could have easily been featured on the soundtrack to a classic ’80’s movie, following a similar suit to ‘I’ve Had The Time of My Life’.

In an album so sharply focussed on tight production and frolicking with various effects, the Mattman and Robin produced ‘Gimmie Love’ adopts a more simplistic touch through utilising Jepsen’s angelic vocals beautifully over minimalistic over reverberated percussion and metallic guitar riffs. Then there is sole conventional ballad ‘All That’ – a slow schmaltzy number rife with twinkling keys and giggling synthesisers, lavishly drizzled with Jepsen’s syrupy sweet vocals. The end of the middle eight hits a colossal climax which completes the track nicely.

Whilst Jepsen doesn’t necessarily demonstrate the greatest vocal range, this is greatly compensated for by the compelling melodies that stick in the mind long after the album’s final track. Every track is solid enough to be a single and this engenders a flawless album of pop gold.

‘Emotion’ is a glitzy album bursting with vibrancy; forty five minutes in which the listener is permitted to re-enter the comfort of a convivial, juvenile world free of the stresses of life. A perfect pop album.

Rating: 5/5.

‘Emotion’ is out now on Interscope/School Boy Records.

Congratulations, Gary Barlow.

December 9, 2013February 21, 2015 MarcyB0yLeave a comment

This is a post I’ve meant to write for the last week or so but you know how hectic life can get!

Two weeks ago, Gary Barlow released his first solo studio album in 14 long years. A lot has happened in that time for him, for each individual member of Take That and Take That itself. Promising solo careers faded far into the horizon, the underdog proved victorious and bitter rivalry resulted in long-term rifts and years of anonymity.

We all know the story, Gary’s debut solo effort ‘Open Road’, whilst not perhaps the album he initially intended it to be due to record label input, flew straight into Number One in the UK album charts. Three top 10 singles later (including two Number Ones) and it was decided Gary was well and truly on the right track. Fast forward two years and the dance track ‘Stronger’ was released which reached Number 16. Whilst a respectable chart position, it was the beginning of rocky time. ‘For All that You Want’ charted at a disappointing #24 and Gary’s follow up album ‘Twelve Months Eleven Days’ limped in at an unfair #35. A range of factors have been attributed to the lack of commercial success of Gary’s sophomore solo album; the press, promotional decisions, Robbie Williams. Whatever it was, there’s no denying that such a great album should have fared far better in the charts.

‘Twelve Months…’ was far from a bad album. It showed a high level of musicality and diversity. ‘Stronger’ was more dance-pop orientated, ‘Wondering’ disco-pop along side all of Gary’s classic Barlow ballads. ‘Lie To Me’, which would have been the third single from the album, was considered by critics as one of Barlow’s best compositions at the time and I can’t help but agree. A dramatic, beautiful song, it showed that Gary’s creativity was far from gone.

But the press turned against him. Robbie had turned against him. The public followed. Gary was dropped from his record label and faded into anonymity, facing his humiliation in private. He turned his back on music and gained a significant amount of weight, turning to food for comfort. After a period of depression, Gary turned his life around. He formed a successful career as a songwriter with his friend Elliot Kennedy and the pair spent a successful few years writing for many pop artists.

Then in 2005, Take That returned. I don’t think any of Take That could have anticipated the high demand and high public appreciation for them when they returned. It was supposed to be ‘one last tour’ and a documentary. This transformed into a brand new studio album, the perfect ‘Beautiful World’ which performed fantastically in the charts and much praise was aimed in Barlow’s direction for his songwriting. That isn’t to undermine the other members of Take That’s songwriting ability, however. They all have a key and fundamental role. It’s simply that Barlow is the ringleader, perhaps the member that gets the ball rolling musically. Take That’s success was rebuilt and two more studio albums followed including the reconciliation with Robbie Williams.

During Take That’s hiatus, solo careers began again. Robbie released his best studio album in years with the defiant ‘Take The Crown’. Mark released the criminally underrated ‘The Art of Doing Nothing’. After a successful string of UK tour dates, Gary decided to follow suit and ‘Since I Saw You Last’ was born.

I have to be honest, on my first listens to previews, I wasn’t convinced. My first listen to ‘Let Me Go’ disappointed me hugely. Why? Because it sounds extremely like Mumford and Sons who are one of very few bands that really aren’t my cup of tea! But some songs really caught me even in the previews and I pre-ordered the box-set which arrived around a month later. Not liking the previews didn’t concern me. The ‘Beautiful World’ previews left me underwhelmed. Now it’s my favourite album ever released by any artist.

I loved the album on my first complete listen and I have only grown to love it more with every listen. It’s a beautifully created album. It doesn’t attempt anything drastically different. There’s no experimentation with different genres but that doesn’t matter at all. Instead, we hear lots of guitar driven songs with a hint of folk music. ‘Requiem’ is an awesome opener reminiscent of The Beatles and following the formula of ‘Shine’ a little.

Songs such as ‘Let Me Go’, ‘Small Town Girls’ and ‘This House’ are very ‘Mumford and Sons’ orientated and are perhaps my least favourite songs on the album. I still think they’re great tracks, don’t get me wrong, they’re just not my cup of tea.

Then we reach my favourites. ‘Jump’ is an inspiring and beautiful composition written with Keane’s Tim Rice-Oxley. It’s interesting on this album how many songs borrow elements from Take That’s previous work. The middle eight uses a chord structure extremely similar to Take That’s ‘You’ from The Circus album. Similarly the incredible title track sounds a little like ‘How did it come to this’, also from The Circus. ‘Since I Saw You Last’ is a powerful, energetic song that’s bound to be an epic moment when performed live. You can tell it contains what Gary’s been longing to write for the last fourteen years – “For those who stood and watched, go f**k yourself”, he declares. It’s definitely a highlight of the album and arguably one of Gary Barlow’s best compositions.The repetition of “I know you heard” at the end of the song always hits me emotionally. ‘6th Avenue’ is a sweet song which is rhythmically simple to the sweeping, stunning ‘Like I Never Loved You at all’ from Take That’s Beautiful World album. That’s not to say that these songs rip off existing Take That songs – far from it. They just use a formula that Gary obviously knows works.

‘God’ is another highlight for me. With a haunting introduction and stunning piano runs, it’s an utterly enchanting song. Inquisitive, meaningful lyrics really make this track and it’s a beautiful moment on the album. ‘Face to Face’ is the catchiest song to hit the UK for months. With a little help from Elton John, this is an incredible song sure to stay in your mind for days to come. It’s great to see Gary writing with John Shanks again (responsible for co-writing and producing much of the Beautiful World and The Circus albums) and I really hope they team up again with the other members of Take That when they create Take That’s next album.

Then we reach more tender songs. ‘We Like to Love’ sounds like a hybrid of jazz/easy listening music and something Coldplay would release. It’s an absolutely beautiful song and it’s gorgeous to be able to hear Gary sing in his lower range again which I don’t feel we’ve heard properly since the title track from ‘The Circus’. Then we reach the heartbreaking ‘Dying Inside’. A raw, simplistic song which features just a piano, cello and Gary’s voice, it’s a haunting, gorgeous song. It’s obvious what this song is about, so much so it doesn’t need to be discussed. It’s hard to listen to but at the same time, it’s Gary at his best.

Two songs I also love are only featured on the deluxe version of the album. ‘Mr Everything’ features beautiful piano instrumentation and is just a great track. I particularly love the lyrical content on this one, especially “Ain’t life so cruel when you’re just not good enough?”. And finally, ‘Actress’. I believe Actress is one of Gary’s best songs ever. It’s remarkably catchy and the lyrical content is quirky but extremely clever. It’s just an incredible song.

I think it’s heartbreaking to read so many dismal press reviews of this album. Many called it ‘durgy’ and ‘boring’ but it’s far from that. It’s an honest, fantastically written album. Gary sticks to what he loves and does best – pop-rock songs and beautiful ballads. So what if it doesn’t push boundaries? So what if it doesn’t cause controversy? It’s been created lovingly and that’s perhaps the most important thing in music. Gary didn’t need to create this album. He created it because he felt he had something to give as a solo artist and because he WANTED to.

‘Since I Saw You Last’ reached an amazing Number Two position in the UK album charts on its release. Why am I so proud? For many reasons. It was a tough week in the album charts as Gary faced fierce competition from those such as One Direction (who were always undoubtedly going to reach the Number One spot). Also it takes a lot of guts to face the world as a solo artist again when things ended so sourly before. Jason Orange once said in an interview “Gary didn’t fail” (regarding his solo career). I couldn’t put it better myself. Gary didn’t fail the first time around, it was due to circumstances beyond his control. No matter how good his second album was, it was never going to be successful due to the press and public perceptions at that time.

I’m proud of Gary Barlow for having the guts to release another solo album. For getting back up from that dark place he was fourteen years ago. For creating such a beautiful piece of art. And for getting to Number Two in the album charts when it’s extremely difficult to do so in this day and age.

Proud member of the GB Army right here.