Liam Payne’s 5 Best Songs

October 20, 2024February 2, 2025 MarcyB0yLeave a comment

The news of former One Direction member Liam Payne passing away at the tender age of 31 has shocked the world to its core. It felt like Liam had so much more to give, and ultimately, it feels like an absolute waste of a life.

Whilst Liam was known and loved by many for his warm, down-to-earth personality, the last few years didn’t seem quite as kind to him, and it felt like he became a little lost along the way. His solo career was a rocky ride with some success but seemingly didn’t capture the public’s attention like some of his ex-bandmates.

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.

Boybands and drugs

May 28, 2014February 15, 2015 MarcyB0yLeave a comment

This morning, many of us awoke to – in the Daily Mail’s words – ‘SHOCKING’ news Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik had been captured on video smoking a joint. It was plastered as the main headline on the Mail Online website and many ‘comedic’ trends appeared on Twitter thereafter. As a lover of the entertainment industry, I thought I’d take the time to blog about it and my opinions. If I am honest, I see this situation from both perspectives and I will explain why below.

Marijuana is a massively popular drug. It’s been referred to as the most commonly used drug in the world, particularly in America. Compared to most drugs, marijuana often sparks some debate over the use of it. Many-a-time has there been calls to make it legal and it very much appears to be a drug that is more socially acceptable than others.

The entertainment industry is no different with their attitudes towards marijuana. Countless celebrities have smoked/continue to smoke marijuana and we can guarantee there are many others who haven’t been caught or haven’t admitted to doing so. My point here is that Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik are just two people out of many, many famous people who take the drug. They are young men, excessively rich and as sickly as it sounds, they are on a journey to finding themselves as we all are at that age. The difference is, they are doing it in the public eye where there are certain expectations. It’s funny really. For many members of bands, drug usage is almost the norm. From members of The Beatles to Matt Healy from The 1975, members of The Rolling Stones to Tom Chalin from Keane – drug usage has almost been considered ‘okay’ because they’re all rock/alternative/indie bands. There’s no fuss caused over them doing drugs yet as Louis and Zayn are in a boyband, it’s forbidden.

On the other hand I do see why it is an issue. I am not completely defending them at all. Personally, I am against drugs. I have never taken them in any form and I don’t ever plan to. Life has it’s ups and downs but I don’t feel the need to turn to them. Having said that, I have friends who will turn to marijuana occasionally and whilst that’s not a decision I agree with, I respect their decision because it’s not my life. We are all entitled to make our own choices in life.

Zayn & Louis are role models. There are millions of young Directioners all over the world – many Primary School-aged or in their early teens. They are expected to be role models to these millions of young fans and I guess in such a profession, that is part of the job. There’s no negotiation, it’s an unwritten rule. In the 21st century, the pressures on them to be positive influences is even more important. A Twitter & Tumblr culture means there are many, many young people who seem to get led astray far too easily. They go to extreme, often concerning lengths to protect and defend their idols. The issue this event will cause is that now many young people will think that it’s ‘okay’ and ‘cool’ to do drugs and they will defend their heroes. As I said, it’s people’s own decision if they wish to do drugs. But that doesn’t mean that drug usage should be advertised as acceptable and cool to young people by those in the public eye. If these boys are to smoke marijuana, do it in private! Don’t get caught and don’t become a walking advertisement. We don’t want future generations to think that this is the way forward for them or we will create a culture in which drug usage will increase, as will illness and dependency on the health service. We don’t want future generations to be even more damaged than our current one.

Do I think this will blow over? Yes. The boys will more than likely release a statement apologising for their actions, admitting how ‘foolish’ they’ve been and we know damn well they won’t regret their actions in the slightest. They’ll just regret getting caught. They are foolish, I think most of us will agree but this will all be left in the past sooner or later.

Let’s face it, these boys aren’t the first and they certainly won’t be the last band members to be caught or accused of such events. Robbie Williams is a noteworthy example in addition to Brian Harvey from East 17 who declared “It’s cool to take drugs”. We have always had and always will have boyband members ‘tarnishing their squeaky clean image’. The important thing now is for the boys to apologise, get a slap on the wrists from their management and not get caught again. They’re human. Let them make their mistakes and move on.