Midnight Memories 
One Direction
Released by Syco and Columbia
In the three years One Direction has been a group, they have accomplished extraordinary feats. Their newest album, Midnight Memories, highlights the progress they’ve made.
Since 2011’s Up All Night, One Direction have matured immensely and it shows on their latest release.
One Direction has taken a lot more creative control over this album, with all members contributing to the writing. The album also boasts impressive writing collaborations with Mumford and Sons, McFly, Snow Patrol, and OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder.
The album opens with the poppy “Best Song Ever.” This song seems a little out of place among the other tracks, but is a good bridge between this album and 2012’s Take Me Home.
The album’s second single, “Story of My Life,” was written by all five boys, and has a very mature quality to it. It establishes the sound for the remainder of the album, and is a phenomenal example of how far these boys have come. It truly represents their growth, and proves that they’ve finally discovered their own sound.
“Diana” is a good meld of the pop and rock sounds on the album, and is a great precursor to “Midnight Memories,” which is a lot rockier than anything they’ve done before. It’s heavy on the guitar. Other songs like “Through the Dark” also follow in this vein.
“You and I” is my favourite of the album’s many ballads. It’s slower, but unlike most of the other slow songs, it’s still very memorable and showcases the individual vocal talents of the boys nicely.
“Don’t Forget Where You Belong” is one of the album’s many stadium-worthy anthems. It’s generic musically, but definitely sincere. It’s an earnest song and a reminder of the boys’ roots.
“Strong,” “Does He Know?,” and “Happily” are all standouts on the album—romantic, upbeat, catchy songs that still manage to remain original among the other poppy songs on the album.
On the other hand, “Right Now,” “Something Great,” “Better Than Words,” and a few others are all a little generic and easy to forget.
“Little Black Dress” is a perfect example of the boys shedding their innocent roots—it’s a rocky, provocative tune with a country undertone. “Little White Lies” is similar thematically but it’s one of the poppier songs and has a nice electro feel.
“Alive” is a much better song to end the album with than “Half A Heart” and I wish they’d ended there, because it’s a rock anthem that’s groovy, with a nice mix of the new and old One Direction.
As a whole, Midnight Memories is an enormous improvement for One Direction. They’re finally stepping out of their bubblegum pop box and developing their own style. Musically, they can only go up.
