Hey all,
For today's album review, I will listening to ZAYN's new solo album! He rose to fame in the boy group 'One Direction' before deciding to leave the band to pursue his own career. He was also known for being in a relationship with Perrie Edwards, member of Little Mix who rose to fame on The X Factor UK one year after One Direction appeared...but they soon broke up! His first solo album was called 'Mind of Mine', released back in 2016, followed by 'Icarus Falls' in 2018, and now 'Nobody Is Listening' is his newest album that was released on 15th January 2021.
1 - 'Calamity'
This first single on the album was more of a spoken word piece rather than an ordinary song, but it was a good introduction to this new album. I was very surprised how different ZAYN's voice sounds compared to when he was younger, but he's 28 years old now...which makes me feel feel old, as I've grown up knowing who he is since 2010!! Towards the end of the song he sang the words 'Nobody Is Listening' which is the name of the album, with a piano instrumental in the background without lyrics, before fading out.
2 - 'Better'
The next single on the song is called 'Better' which initially gives the impression that he either feels better or wants to feel better. Some of the lyrics include 'your Dad probably loves me more than he ever did' which could show that at first, somebody's father wasn't the biggest fan of ZAYN, but his behaviour has improved and he has grown into a respectful young man. Other lyrics include 'give it a try or I'll say goodbye' which could also signify that ZAYN wants something more with the person he's singing about, and if they don't want to put the effort in, then he's going to move onto a new relationship.
3 - 'Outside'
The next single on the album started with the lyrics 'Two wrongs don't make a right', which give the impression that he admits to acting badly, but is also calling somebody out for not being as 'perfect' as they seem. I think this is a song where ZAYN is thinking about some of the situations he has been in, complimenting somebody on the t shirt that they're wearing, admitting he would 'leave his sh*t outside' asking for somebody to let him in...and also trying to focus on the positive aspects of life rather than the bad things that have happened to him in the past.
4 - 'Vibez'
The style of this song comes across as a love song as the opening lyrics describe wanting to 'take your clothes off' after waiting all night, admitting that if he's going too fast, they can 'slow up'. The word 'Vibez' describes the type of situation people are in, whether there are good or bad vibes...and in this song, they're definitely good vibes. Some of the other lyrics include that he wants to do all the things in this person's dreams, as he is confident that they are thinking about him even when they're asleep. Apparently when people think about you first thing in the morning or as their last memory at night time...they often want something more than a friendship...but don't take my word for it!
5 - 'When Love's Around' (feat Syd)
The first of two collaborations on this album is with Syd, an American singer, who I've heard of before...but never heard her sing! The background instrumental of the song had a really relaxing vibe, and the blend of their vocals after ZAYN's solo verse work really well together. I'm not too sure what the meaning of the song is but it's definitely something to do with the presence of love, potentially referring to somebody being called 'love' rather than their actual name. I like the alternate vocals of Syd and ZAYN singing the title of the song towards the end, and ZAYN's riff's which bring the song to a close!
6 - 'Connexion'
To start this next song, there was a short guitar solo before ZAYN's vocals began. Some of the lyrics included 'maybe I'm over here overthinking' which was followed by some incredibly high vocals which actually made my eyes open widely, because he reached them so well! He followed up these vocals by singing 'start to feel like something's missing', which could simply relate to him being able to find love, but there's always something that makes him unable to fully commit. During the verses there were short instrumentals with vocals that could just about be heard, with the word 'Connexion' being muffled (but also spelt in the way that ZAYN wanted to, rather than using the ordinary spelling of 'Connection'. He went on to sing the lyrics 'feels like a drug, really f*cked me up' which can also be related back to love, as sometimes it can feel great for a short period of time, and then you come back to reality and it's all over...This was a really interesting style of song, and it's good to see such controversial topics being covered by people who have experienced these things in their personal lives an are able to be confident enough to express their opinions.
7 - 'Sweet'
Out of all the singles on ZAYN's newest album, this is the one with the most rock and roll vibe with loud drums in the background during the chorus, with a softer tone during the verses with a variety of other instruments. He sings the words 'let me touch you where you like it' which gave me the impression that this song is clearly out sex or making out with somebody in the bedroom. He further goes on to sing 'let me show you how much I want ya' which is followed by a loud drum solo and him admitting that he wants to feel skin on his skin, again and again. It's a very powerful song as I feel that a lot of people have similar experiences but are unable to explain how it makes them feel, and being able to express feelings and emotions through a 3 minute song is incredibly difficult, but also very plausable! His backing vocals in this song also help the singing and the instruments blend well together!
8 - 'Unf*ckwitable'
On the album, ZAYN seems to delve into a variety of different genres, including rock, rap and fast paced songs, but this seems to be the slow ballad of the album. Some of the lyrics include 'in a world of my own' which explain that he is focusing on himself and his own path, rathan than comparing himself to others or wanting to be like anybody else. He goes on to say 'so tired of fake friends, fake love' and that the most important things in his life at the moment are 'my vibe, my life around my desire' which explains that he is focusing on his future and not letting anything get in his way. This is a similar mindset to what I have, as I also know of people that don't like me or don't want me to succeed, so being able to block out all the negativity, remove myself from social media and just what I want to do, is my number one priority for the rest of my life.
There are also some quite high vocals once again, where he is able to show off his vocal range, and one of the interesting lyrics is 'forget about whatever you've been told'. This could relate back to social media again, ignoring what people have told you or what you have seen in the digital media world, but instead let the person themselves explain their own story. The other lyrics that I could relate to this as well were 'thinking we were cool...listening to my new stuff...I was never on your mind' which almost explains the timeline of his past and present life, where people from his past had doubted him, yet they are still wanting to listen to his new music and connect with him somehow somewhere...yet before he was famous, they didn't ever think about him - these are people that I will never trust. If you cannot accept me now, whilst I'm still growing and evolving, then when I'm successful or get to where I want to be, I don't want anything to do with you. Simple.
9 - 'Windowsill (feat Devlin)
Joining ZAYN on this song is Devlin, a British rapper from Dagenham! The title of the song doesn't really explain what the lyrics are about. ZAYN describes how he doesn't care where they decide to make love, whether it's on the windowsill or the bed for example, but he's more interested in finding out when they're getting there. The rap verse is quite short, which I am really surprised about, but covers lyrics including 'I don't want no fake love, just a real freak', so somebody to have fun with instead of somebody to use you for pleasure, which is something a lot of people deal with on a regular basis and are unable to get themselves out of. ZAYN also sings the lyrics 'cut me deep and sow me up', explaining that it's the only way to show how you can prove your love to somebody...and I don't think he means literally either. In order to prove yourself to somebody, it's almost like you have to experience the most horrific situations with somebody but then also build that person back up, to show you're there for them whenever they need you the most
10 - 'Tightrope'
I didn't really make too many notes about this particular song, but I knew it was about love as ZAYN explained multiple times throughout different lyrics that he has fallen from such a high place when his time for love came about. Some of the lyrics include 'I wanna see how far I fall, I'm blindfolded and I'm already up here' - which are both lines that explain how far he is able to go romantically with somebody, before they push him out, and the blindfold reference could almost mean that he goes into new relationships without any hope or expectations and just sees what happens. The chorus of the song has the lyrics 'something told me it was you' which is repeated 4 times, and this could identify that he has worked out who this song is about, and that they were the reason for him writing the lyrics to this song...explaining how they were at the top of their love game, and then he was pushed out/fell off the tightrope. The final line of lyrics I wanted to explain was 'we are who we are when we're alone' - which is also a snippet of a Little Mix song for any mixers that happen to read this...but explains that they are able to show their true colours when they're alone, without any publicity or other people around. Towards the end of the song, ZAYN sings some of the lyrics in Urdu, which is the language of the country he originates from, and the blend of languages makes the song internationally acceptable, but also allows two audiences to come together and celebrate the inclusivity of their culture within British music!
11 - 'River Road'
The final song on this album is called 'River Road' which is the only song title not included in the actual lyrics themselves, but the opening lyrics include 'we don't divide eachother' which could be interpreted as 'we SHOULDN'T divide eachother' or he is explaining that there is no divide with whoever the song is about. Again, I'm not too sure what the lyrics of the song mean, but there are several alcohol references including 'call you my lover, drinks to my liver' which I think is just a creative way to explain that he's in love, and therefore they're going to drink together. He also speaks more about his individual future with the lyrics 'what will I leave behind me, where will I choose to go', so that seems to be a selection of questions he's wanting to ask his future self in terms of the legacy he will leave, but also if he decides to potentially leave the music industry, what will he do and what opportunities will be out there for him. The final lyrics I wanted to explore were 'searching for meaning, still don't believe it' which could simply mean that he is looking for how his life can be explained to future generations, or what the meaning of his life it...but unable to believe anything that people say, until the meaning has been found, and proven to him!
I hope you enjoyed this album review! It's great to see ZAYN back with some new music, and I'm excited to see what happens in terms of his future music career. Out of all the 5 original members of One Direction, personally, ZAYN was my favourite in terms of vocals, and he is definitely not the 'shy boy' that he was back when he was 17! My favourite songs from this album were 'When Love's Around', 'Connexion', Unf*ckwitable' and 'Tightrope'!
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