One Direction - is this a legit new threat wrt to a new boy band invasion? y/n

you'll get there some dude. everyone gets there eventually.

i dreamt about "still the one" recently

They played a ballads set at the Rockin' NYE show last night, ugh

"Best Song Ever" always sounds good when it turns up at one of our school assemblies--I'll definitely take it over the two Taylor Swift songs that hit #1 last year.

i love tswift and i love 1989 but "style" aside i can't really take it seriously as a harry styles breakup album when four exists.

They played a ballads set at the Rockin' NYE show last night, ugh

― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, January 1, 2015 6:41 PM (8 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

post-"What Makes You Beautiful," they only get traction on U.S. radio with ballads ("Story Of My Life" by far the biggest and "Night Changes" on its way to being much more successful than "Steal My Girl"), which i think is such a shame, all their best stuff is uptempo imo.

I've puzzled over the decision making process behind that. Do programmers think there's some part of their audience demographic for whom those songs come off as too bubblegum or teenpop?

well, ballads in general have made kind of a comeback on pop radio in recent years. and their ballads fit in w/ the other ballads being played, whereas something like "Best Song Ever" sticks out like a sore thumb.

I'm not sure they would stick out more than "Rather Be" or Idina Menzel or maybe some other things.

perhaps. the format is pretty weird and varied at the moment. they just seem to slot in less easily either way.

"night changes" is their best single tho

rock doesn't really get played on pop radio right now and they don't do pop influenced by dance music or R&B so that sort of leaves them in the ballad lane

also they have classic rock influences whereas basically all crossover rock hits here are influenced by pitchfork indie rock

"night changes" is their best single tho

:|

well as clarified several times upthread they are garbage at picking singles so i guess i could see that

it is however in no way better than "kiss you"

"What Makes You Beautiful" is still a hell of a signature tune imo. "Night Changes" might be my least favorite on Four.

"Mirrors" is probably as classic rock as "Steal My Girl."

"what makes you beautiful" is really good but it kinda feels like a different group at this point

"What Makes You Beautiful" is the band's N Sync-era preset.

fairly sure the rock-on-pop-radio stuff is a red herring -- no one who isn't a music critic sees one direction as rock or as anything but a boy band

right but among modern boy bands they have the almost singular distinction of having no R&B or EDM aspirations and lots of guitar in the mix on practically every song

true, but if a band is a boy band then all of that is simply not heard by most of the public, who still thinks they are that photo upthread. if anything, I'd venture that the lack of R&B/EDM aspirations contributes to that

yeah I wonder if sticking to ballads as singles, ship's remark about ballads making a comeback on pop radio notwithstanding, is the record company's way of not dealing with promoting rock tracks on top 40 radio.

"What Makes You Beautiful" is still a hell of a signature tune imo

otm. fucking timeless pop tune imo

Well, is that true? "Steal My Girl," the first single from the album, was not promoted? Or it just wasn't added by programmers.

Well they sent Midnight Memories to US pop radio despite it not at all sounding like anything a top 40/pop station might play. They had at least 3 songs on their last record that would've been the perfect follow-up to their last hit on top 40 and they went with the Def Leppard homage.

"night changes" starts off so exquisitely but the key change is so unnecessary

I'm into "Night Changes". Even though their uptempo numbers are still my favorite of theirs, in their post-Midnight Memories era their ballads fit better with the rest of their more romantic, stadium filler output. I'm also finding "Fool's gold" and "Spaces" two very satisfying ballads, the only real clunker being "18".

i like "night changes"

Best bit about "Night Changes" is Harry's growly chorus - such a great marriage in terms of voice/delivery with lyrical content (ironic given he's the youngest dude in the band).

"Four" is an awesome album, I listened to it twice today on a drive to and from rural bumfuck Vermont. Night Changes, Girl Almighty, No Control, Spaces, Clouds at least are all classic. Also love the vocals on the verses of Where Do Broken Hearts Go...and basically everything else who am I kidding.

Anybody else thing the lead guitar on Clouds sounds a lot like the work on Paul McCartney's Ram album? My first listen had me checking if Hugh McCracken had really passed away or not...

And since its 2 in the morning and nobody's on lemme just off for a bit:

This thread is such a delight and part of why I've just joined ilx in an era where forums have gone the way of the telegraph. Getting to just sit down for 2 hours and read a 2+ year journey chronicling a community's collective discovery, indignation, second thoughts and final embrace of One Direction is a joy (call it Stockholm Syndrome?)

No Control second listen > No Control first listen > Change Your Ticket > No Control third listen

― cr4bdbgs, Wednesday, November 19, 2014 5:55 PM (2 months ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

This is so otm but I still think in the end (after 10+ listens and beyond) No Control is the better tune. Also to whoever said upthread that Louis's vox on the chorus ruin it for him I soon disagree with. The charm of utilizing his thinner more dainty vocals for a massive hook is just so novel and really makes the song for me

Question: who the hell is singing the "Am I the only? Only believer?" bit in Girl Almighty? Rapgenius doesn't say and I can't tell if its Harry or Zayn. My gut says Zayn but sometimes I hear it otherwise

Another Question: Does anyone else with the CD feel like the mastering is much worse/thinner/quieter on Steal My Girl than on the rest of the tracks?

To insert myself clean into the narrative now: I was very 1d skeptic since they dropped, but I dug WMYB and Little Things. Then the one-two punch of Best Song Ever and SOML hit me like a rocketship and I had to buy Midnight Memories on release day. The rest is stanning alone on the internet history

Also to comment on one thing way upthread re: personal 1d power rankings.

I think how you rank the band members is one thing, and the power rankings are spirit. The one is your solid favs list and is filled with your own biases and the latter is a more fluid thing.

For me my 1-5 is:
Harry
Louis
Liam
Niall
Zayn

But I think the current (Jan 23 2015) 1d power ranking is:
Harry
Zayn
Louis
Niall
Liam

C/D?

*sits on hands*

"Question: who the hell is singing the "Am I the only? Only believer?" bit in Girl Almighty? Rapgenius doesn't say and I can't tell if its Harry or Zayn. My gut says Zayn but sometimes I hear it otherwise"

It's Zayn, i'm pretty sure.

https://41.media.tumblr.com/f790a696cea561bb7af9e22d888e230f/tumblr_nip6e9jpz21qjo1fpo2_540.png

FUCK

"Night Changes" peaking at #31 on Billboard after 16 weeks is sad.

their 3rd-biggest US radio hit, which tells you how little time US radio has for them outside of "What Makes You Beautiful" and "Story of My Life"

i love "night changes" so much

what's the next single? idk if there's anything obvious

I could see them going with "Ready to Run" but it seems like maybe heroic Mumford-style power folk is on the way out? Fans have embraced "Stockholm Syndrome" but I don't see it doing much on radio. Maybe "Where Do Broken Hearts Go?"

Personally hoping for sentimental faves "No Control" or "Girl Almighty" but, I mean, they probably wouldn't even scrape the top 40 if "Night Changes" peaked so low.

i was thinking maybe "fireproof" but it doesn't really have a chorus

i think "girl almighty" could do alright... never count out the big strummy stompers

i saw something that suggested "Clouds" is the next single, which is my favorite song by them so i would totally support that even though i dunno if it has a ton of commercial potential.

I'll get down on my knees for you.

I always forget about "18" cuz it's the only skipper on the standard album but, damn, a big ballad with the Sheeran stamp might be their best bet. Hoping I'm wrong!