One Direction’s ‘Four’: Review Revue

It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting fo(u)r, Directioners: Today, the talented troupe known as One Direction released their fourth studio album, the appropriately titled FOUR, worldwide.

Along with singles “Steal My Girl” and “Night Changes,” as well as their previously released pre-order tracks including “18” and “Where Do Broken Hearts Go?”, the band’s latest outing sees the boys continuing to mature in sound and style, supplying more songwriting credits than ever before. Over here at Idolator, we thought the album saw the boys “reaching harder for the adult romantic longing of The Killers,” giving the album 4 out of 5 stars. But what did everybody else ’round the Internet have to say?

Check out highlights from other reviews around the globe after the jump.

:: Billboard gave the album 2.5 out of 5 stars, suggesting the band “doesn’t sound entirely ready to let go of its bubble-gum days: “None of these tracks can match the best cuts on the act’s first two albums for sheer catchiness. As singles go, ‘Steal My Girl’ is no ‘What Makes You Beautiful,’ but its Coldplay-lite piano pop could be a good direction if 1D really wants to play with the big boys.”

:: TIME praised the group’s continued evolution, calling the album a continuation of Midnight Memories: “[1D’s] members are more involved in the composition of their material than ever, and the album as a whole takes another step towards the stadium-sized rock first suggested by Midnight Memories. There’s something endearing to the revelation that left to their own devices, One Direction’s members just want to make heart-on-sleeve, slightly cheesy ’80s arena anthems in the vein of Journey, Bryan Adams, and Bruce Springsteen circa Born in the U.S.A.”

:: The Associated Press similarly praised the group’s continued pop stronghold among the teens: “On “Four,” One Direction…continues to produce perfectly polished pop tunes with the edges buffed for maximum shine. And shine they do: it’s hard to deny the anodyne appeal of strummer ‘Ready To Run,’ the up-tempo Buddy Holly-sway of ‘Girl Almighty,’ the Ed Sheeran-penned sweetly nostalgic ’18,’ or new single, ‘Night Changes,’ which may or may not be about losing one’s innocence. It’s hard to tell since the band’s lyrics wisely never veer from PG.”

:: The New York Daily News, however gave the album 3 out of 5 stars, and saw FOUR as a step back “in both sound and sensibility”: “Midnight Memories seemed more mature, at least by Tiger Beat standards. It featured more rock guitars, albeit of a toy variety. Some lyrics found them cursing, if blurred to a shhh, and there were hints the guys may have — gasp! — gone all the way (though only on the bonus tracks). The sole move ahead this time can be found in the writing credits. The group claims part authorship of all but two songs, up from three last time.”

:: The Guardian gave the album 3 out of 5 stars, noting a touch of Bruce Springsteen in some of the tracks: “The single ‘Steal My Girl’ recalls Springsteen’s foot-stamping bombast, coated in a sugary gloss, and on this album at least one of the five band members has a writing credit on most songs. It’s hardly groundbreaking pop, but Four is capably sung and beautifully produced.”

:: Digital Spy was thoroughly impressed with the boys’ continued domination and growth, giving the album 4 out of 5 stars: “Okay, so one massive hit and they’ll wobble on the second album, right? It got bigger, and then even bigger again with the third album touring stadiums across the planet. So here we are with a fourth album – imaginatively titled FOUR – and a boyband who should be heading dangerously close to the end of their career cycle – but you’d be foolish to write them off just yet.”

:: VICE was similarly positive — and mostly impressed with the lads’ ability to keep on truckin’: “They know you’re out here side-eyeing their reality show roots, deriding their young female fanbase, and dismissing their shiny pop sound, and not only are they not bothered, they’ve used that blind hatred to broaden their ambitions beyond what their critics think they deserve. Four is a focused, genuinely fun pop-rock album, and a sign of truly promising growth that isn’t likely to taper off soon.”

:: And finally, USA Today named FOUR their Album Of The Week, awarding the record 3 out of 4 stars: “Nobody expects a group like One Direction to stay together forever. Probably, though, few people expected them to still be getting better. After Four, it’s clear: This is no ordinary boy band.”