One Direction and Graffiti6

Today I have music for you by the biggest boy band in the world. There is a lot of talk with One Direction, some people liking them, some people disliking them, and a handful of strangely obsessed people. Now I must tell you guys the truth, I did not start out as someone who listened to One Direction. However, I have grown to like them a lot. With the passing of each album, One Direction has matured from being the stereotypical adolescent boy band to a group that has some really nice adult contemporary music and a group that has a nice and mature sound. What is even nicer about this group is that you can clearly hear the progression of each individual singer and you can hear how each of them have improved. To me that is a good sign, because a group that is willing to improve upon something that is already a worldwide sensation shows me that there are even greater things to come. Now this song is off their latest album titled Four. I guess it is practical considering this is the fourth album that the boys have put out. This whole album has this ind of 80's throwback sound to it. Each song sounds different, but a lot of them have this 80's pop influence. I kind of like that because I have not heard something like that from a big pop group, and especially a boy band. One Direction does not stick with the conventional pop style of music with this album. There are some synth pop melodies woven through and some indie pop thrown in there too. I like this softer and toned down disc-esque sound with this particular song. The beginning opens with some simple guitar picking, the same note over again. A piano is then introduced to add a little bit more flavor. And then the song explodes into this catchy and down to earth pop melody. This is melody that doesn't get you super energized, but it is one that still makes you want to bob your head or dance along to. This song has a great synth pop throb that just captivates you and captures you. Which brings me to the next point. This song is a little bit edgy for One Direction in terms of lyrics. I mean the song talks about a guy getting trapped by a girl and he likes it. This is definitely not something we are used to hearing from a boy band and One Direction in particular. Honestly, I kind of like darker edge to them. This song juxtaposes those darker lyrics with a melody and beat that is peppy and very synth based so that it has this bounce to it. This song is a really nice slick and body-moving R&B song that is quite the earworm. I have yet to tire of this song, and I don't think I will for a long while. Today's instrumental song is by the band Graffiti6 which is actually more of a project by the incredible Jamie Scott. I know that a majority of the people I talk to have no idea who Jamie Scott is nor do they know his band. But, Jamie Scott is one of the greatest song writers of this generation and is unofficially the sixth member of One Direction. He is the one who has written most of the One Direction songs and has been the main songwriter that the boy band collaborates with. His band Graffiti6 is absolutely nothing like One Direction. Graffiti6 has a totally different song that is a mix of indie rock and synth pop. He is a very soulful singer and we hear that in pretty much all of his songs. Graffiti6 has this blend of extremely characterized voice and a crisp, intricate kind of grooving sound created by an offbeat guitar. It is quite infectious really. Graffiti6 also features some really gorgeous lyrics that are very meaningful and deep. I feel like this is a different side to Jamie Scott and I definitely fell in love with it when I first heard it. Graffiti6 does have that 80's vibe to some of their songs as well and their music is a more tame kind of disco energy. I hope you enjoy the music and please feel free to comment!