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Rachel Shoshanna

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So I warned you I'd probably talk about One Direction at some point. That point has come.


At around 1 a.m. last night, right when I was about to go to sleep, One Direction pulled a Beyoncé and dropped a brand new single without any promo. Within half an hour, it had shot to number one on iTunes in almost 80 countries, breaking a record in the process. 

For good reason. The song is catchy as hell, and reminiscent of bands like The Police and Fleetwood Mac, as many people have been commenting in reviews of the song. Now, Fleetwood Mac is one of my most favorite bands of all time, and on first listen I wasn't sure why people thought it felt like them. But then I listened to it again - and again, and again - and I urge you to do so as well, paying good attention to the instrumentation. It's the rhythm guitar on the choruses and the rollicking bass line on the verses that hearkens back to songs like Rhiannon or Little Lies. It's a tried-and-true formula and I, for one, love the band's commitment it; it satisfies my little '70s pop rock heart.

The voices are split well on the parts - quite possibly my favorite thing about the song is how Liam got to let his lower range shine. The boy has a beautiful baritone, and he's never really gotten to show it off until now, which makes me excited for the other music from the album we have yet to hear. Harry really shines on the riffs at the end of the song, filling in for and actually sounding quite similar to former bandmate Zayn. Frankly, the only thing about the song I don't like is that you can hear where Zayn's voice would have fit into the song really well. I yearn for a reunion one day where we can hear him sing on the track. 

"Drag Me Down" also really shows how far the boys have come since their days on The X Factor. I for one am really proud of them. It's a slick, fun, and upbeat song that has the potential to get stuck in people's heads on the regular. It's already stuck in mine. I'm just gonna say it - "Drag Me Down" is the new song of the summer.
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So here's the thing: I love Mumford & Sons with all of my heart. Like, they're easily one of my favorite bands, because of their distinctive neo-folk style. However, even I could recognize that as amazing as their last album (Babel) was, the kind of music they were making was going to get repetitive really quickly.

Which is why I was super excited and not entirely surprised when I heard that Wilder Mind was going to be a more rock influenced album, and I have to say that I'm overall pretty impressed with what they've put together. 

The band recorded this third album in Brooklyn under the production of Aaron Dessner, of The National, and James Ford, producer for the Arctic Monkeys. You can hear the influence of both bands in the instrumentation of the songs; the electric guitars and driving percussion beats give the impression of a record designed to fill stadiums, and there is no doubt in my mind of Marcus Mumford and co.'s ability to do so. It is a broad, big indie rock sound that, as different as it is from their previous albums, still retains that Mumford & Sons feel.

Because here's the thing - you can still recognize them as Mumford & Sons, the brand. The new instruments and style don't do anything to mask what I like to think of as the "Mumford & Sons spirit." This collection of songs could easily have been set to their previous acoustic folk instrumentals and worked just as well; lyrically, the songs are still poetic and longing and poignant, and still have the ability to strike a chord within the listener (though I confess I do miss the literary allusions to be heard on Sigh No More and Babel. I love me some Shakespeare). The choruses and the build up to them still maintain the power and emotional truth the songs on those other albums did, able to touch something within that you barely even realized was there. 

Frankly, musical elitism and this phenomenon people like to call "selling out" are ridiculous; just because bands evolve doesn't mean they're not making good music, and just because a certain kind of music isn't to your taste doesn't automatically make it bad. Even with their major musical overhaul, Mumford & Sons is still making beautiful music, and people would do well to give this album a chance. I have a feeling its one of those that you have to listen to a few times before it clicks. And when it finally does, you'll find yourself belting along to all of the choruses the way you would if you were blasting down an empty highway on a dusky summer night. 

Some tracks to check out in particular:

"Tompkins Square Park," into "Believe" (seamless musical transitions!! It's gorgeous, guys, even though "Believe" itself is a teeny bit underwhelming compared to the rest)
"The Wolf"
"Just Smoke"
"Cold Arms"
"Only Love"
"Hot Gates"

Now that I've named nearly half of the album, you should really just go check it out. Happy listening!
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About me

Rachel. Actor/singer/dancer/writer. Music, fashion, and beauty lover. Trying something new here.

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