Now that about 15 years has passed, I haven't changed that much, and when I discovered One Direction about a year and a half ago, my heart just became so happy... *sigh* I even have no qualms about getting excited when I talk about them with the teenage girls I help out at church. Haha.
If that means you won't look at my blog again, your loss! :)
Anyway, One Direction came out with a new album a little over a week ago, and I wanted to break it down for you. Because I want to.
The new album is called Midnight Memories.
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| Released November 25, 2013, it's become the fastest-selling album of 2013! |
1. Best Song Ever - This song came out as a single several months ago, as part of the promotion of their movie This Is Us. It's along the same vein as their first two albums, really upbeat and heavy on the bass. I really enjoy this song, and my boys' favorite part is when they say, "Ow!" 5 stars. Take a look at the music video (it's pretty hysterical, by the way):
2. Story of My Life - This is the song that really sets the tone for the rest of the album. The guys have shared that they had more of a hand in writing the songs this go around, and you can tell because the album has more of a gritty, guitar-based sound. (Most likely thanks to Niall being an excellent guitarist.) Story of My Life is a sad song though mid-tempo, and though the lyrics don't tell a clear story, you get the general gist. 5 stars. The music video has nothing to do with the lyrics, but it's really cute because they ran with the phrase "story of my life" and made it about their families. Take a look:
3. Diana - This song almost has an 80s feel to it, because of the sound of the drum beat. The guitar in the chorus reminds me a bit of Don Henley's Boys of Summer. I don't really understand the story behind the lyrics, but I like the song in general. 5 stars.
4. Midnight Memories - The song that lends it's name to the title of the album is all about the life they're living, and the memories they make late at night - album parties, and singing with friends, etc. It's definitely their anthem song for the album and would be fun to dance to. It's not my favorite song from the album, but I like it. 4 stars.
5. You & I - Let me just say that Niall's voice sounds amazing on this song! It's a slower song, and I like the sentiment of it - that things might be hard in a relationship, but you figure things out along the way and work hard to never let things come between you. And the music is great. This is one of the songs from the album that gets stuck in my head, especially the chorus because of Harry's pretty voice... 5 stars.
6. Don't Forget Where You Belong - This song has a nice sentiment, reminding us (and them) that no matter where you go, you will always belong with your family and friends back home. The music is really good too. 5 stars.
7. Strong - This is another song that gets stuck in my head! The music is so catchy, lots of guitars and good lyrics. It talks about being with the girl he's with makes him a stronger person. When I hear the chorus, it makes me want to dance! 5 stars.
8. Happily - With the star trend being mostly 5s, you might be surprised to learn this one only gets 3. (And this won't be the last one either.) The music is really good, but the second verse isn't exactly clean, talking about wondering if the girl's new boyfriend knows that he's had her, and not really caring about the consequences of the new boyfriend finding out. Lovely, no? I just wish that the repeated phrase "we're on fire" wasn't so catchy! Like I said, 3 stars.
9. Right Now - One of my favorite songs from the album! It's another slower song, where it talks about how he's gone so much and everything's so new, he just wishes his love was with him to experience it all and bring something familiar. Zayn really outdoes himself on the chorus in this one. He almost sounds like the lead singer from One Republic. Seriously. Definitely 5 stars.
10. Little Black Dress - Ah, shucks. This is another 3-star-er. The music has a 70s/80s feel, which is fun, but again, it's the lyrics that do it in for me. I'm all about clean lyrics, and this one isn't great. It wouldn't be bad if it was just about dancing, but it's more about what a girl dancing in her little black dress makes him feel. So that's a no-no for me. Again, fun music, not fun lyrics. 3 stars.
11. Through The Dark - Good one! Especially for Niall, who I feel really grew with this album. The lyrics are really sweet too, saying he'd do all these things for the love of this girl he loves. Another dance-y chorus. 5 stars.
12. Something Great - Well, poo. I liked this song until I looked up the lyrics. Don't you hate it when that happens? But this song definitely channels Phillip Phillip's song Home. You know the "oooohh" parts of that song that keep getting used for commercials? This song has a part that's really similar to that! It's too bad it isn't clean. 3 stars.
13. Little White Lies - Yeah. Most of the good songs, both in quality and clean-ness, are at the beginning. This is a skipper. 2 stars. (I think instead of mentioning what's bad for the rest of the songs, I'll just say it's not clean, and give the star rating.)
14. Better Than Words - Man. This one isn't as bad as the others, but not wonderful. Still 3 stars. Really too bad, because the "ooh"'s in the background are fun and really steal the show.
15. Why Don't We Go There - Title is self-explanatory. Skip this one! 1 star.
16. Does He Know? - Sitting between two not-great songs, it's nice to have another listenable song in here! The verses have guitar cords that really resemble the song Jessie's Girl by Rick Springfield, which is kinda fun. Not my favorite song because it talks about how he's gonna steal this girl from her boyfriend, but I still like it. 4 stars.
17. Alive - Ugh. Not clean. 1-2 stars.
18. Half a Heart - They hid this gem all the way at the end! And a gem it really is! A ballad that talks about half of himself being missing since he and his girlfriend broke up, it pulls on the heartstrings. I love it! Too bad it had to come after all those other bad songs, or I might not have bothered to listen to it at all. 5 stars.
Ta daaa! If you're still here with me, congratulations... you must really like One Direction too! If you're really curious about the songs, all of them are available on YouTube with lyrics there for you to check for yourself. A person that calls themselves Harry Styles has some of my favorite not-official lyric videos, and you can watch them all by clicking HERE. (Though, I have to say, some of the lyrics are wrong...)
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