Electro producer Calvin Harris has come a long way since his 2007 debut album I Created Disco. Cranking out numerous dance hits since then, the Scotland native recently released his third studio effort, titled 18 Months.
The album sees Harris go the way of fellow dance producer David Guetta, in the sense that he has invited a battery of pop music all-stars to help out on numerous album tracks. While 18 Months has been spawning slews of hit singles on music charts around the world since 2011, the collection of songs as a whole suffers from a severe lack of musical diversity, and certainly doesn’t sound like it took 18 months to make.
18 Months contains a number of popular dance hits that have been making the rounds over airwaves and in clubs since 2011. Listeners will have an extreme sense of familiarity upon looking at what this album has to offer. “Bounce” is present, with its extremely infectious synthesizer hook, which then segues into “Feel So Close,” showcasing Harris himself putting on a passable vocal performance (with a severe lack of a Scottish accent, might I add).
“We Found Love” featuring pop star Rihanna also makes an appearance (though ambitiously to have Rihanna as the featured artist on this release), with its dancy organ line that everyone has been subjected to a few too many times by now.
So it’s been established that Harris, in collaboration with the right pop star, can make a surefire hit that will run its way up the charts. But how does the rest of 18 Months stack up to what we’ve already heard? In the grand scheme of things, it’s more of the same.
More all-star guests appear, gracing tracks with lead vocals in ways that only they can. British pop sensation Ellie Goulding delivers her talents on “I Need Your Love,” and while not a terribly lyrically engaging song, her voice is still very nice to listen to.
Another personal highlight was hearing Florence Welch on the track “Sweet Nothing.” It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that Welch is a talented vocalist, and placing her in a dance music environment as opposed to her typical indie stylings was very interesting to hear.
Harris also managed to land a few Scottish MC’s for the album as well, featuring both Tinie Tempah and Dizzie Rascal on a few fun tracks. It’s an excellent opportunity for both to make a name for themselves across the pond with listeners who may not know them yet.
But it’s not the guest lineup that is the real problem with the record. It’s more so to do with the instrumental side of things. Most songs run the risk of sounding the same, with Harris sticking to his tried-and-true formula of pounding quarter-note bass with obnoxious synth stabs and washes overtop.
“Mansion” is a track with a slow, repetitive build-up that only shows its potential in the final 40 seconds. Two odd little tracks titled “Green Valley” and “School” also managed to sneak into the mix, sounding like something that Harris could be doing musically once the line of popstars stops knocking on his door looking to collaborate.
The joint effort between Harris and Dutch DJ Nicky Romero on “Iron” was somewhat redeeming, but in the end, the majority of these instrumentals feel a bit too similar for my liking.
By the end of the listen, 18 Months doesn’t contain much musical substance and diversity between its 15 tracks. The majority of the tracks are ubiquitous, hands-up, dance tunes built for your favourite nightlife establishment. 18 Months should be considered more as an anthology of singles as opposed to a cohesive body of work in the dance genre. As far as albums go, it’s hard to see this one thriving outside the club environment.
