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Mind of Mine – Album Review

#MindOfMine .. yours now !!!! ? ???

A photo posted by Zayn Malik (@zayn) on

Former One Direction member Zayn Malik, now officially known as ZAYN, released his debut studio album, Mind of Mine, last month. The 18-track album, which shot up to no. 1 in the Australian charts, features the singles PILLOWTALK and LIKE I WOULD that were preceded by the release of the album. The following album review was written using a his and her perspective.

His: Tom Falco

Her: Naomi Avery

Sounds Like

His: The album seems to blend a huge amount of genres, including pop, electronic, hip-hop, rock, and to some extent reggae. A mix of Usher and Drake come to mind when I was listening to the album, in particular the last half of it.

Her: Consisting of slow and upbeat jams, Mind of Mine is a true testament to ZAYN’s undeniable vocal and song-writing talent. The pop/R&B album oozes sensuality, honing in on ZAYN’s sex life whilst still remaining soulful. Moreover, Mind of Mine appears reminiscent to Justin Bieber’s latest album Purpose but with less of a dance feel. Nonetheless, the edgy and cool tones in ZAYN’s album are a massive step up from his previous music with One Direction.

Strengths

His: Three songs stood out to me in particular: PILLOWTALK, LIKE I WOULD, and iT’s YoU. The strengths of the album filter though these songs. ZAYN demonstrates not only his singing ability but also explosive production, and somewhat meaningful lyrical capabilities.

Her: I would have to agree with Tom. My favourite songs are also PILLOWTALK and LIKE I WOULD, as well as BeFoUr and wRoNg (feat. Kehlani). ZAYN’s sultry vocals are evident throughout these songs, all the while backed up killer slow beats that really hit the sweet spot during the chorus. Adding on to this, it is clear that the lyrics come from a very honest place in ZAYN’s heart – making this album all the more special.

Weaknesses

His: The album doesn’t offer anything interesting beyond the three mentioned tracks. It’s clear that bland tracks like sHe, dRuNk, and TiO are simply on the album to appeal to the obsessed female ZAYN fan base.

Her: With a total of 18 tracks included in the album, it’s hard not to find Mind of Mine a little bit repetitive. The album could have been cut down to 14 or 15 songs, as many of the songs were just extensions of another. The introduction and intermission songs are really just a waste of time considering they are each no longer than two minutes and therefore appear incomplete. I’m also a bit confused as to why ZAYN decided to spell the names of his songs LiKe tHiS. It’s not a good first look when he’s made it very apparent that he wanted his album to be more mature than what he’s produced with his former band mates.

Overall Comments

His: I believe ZAYN has taken huge steps to cementing himself as a reputable solo artist with a handful of songs on Mind of Mine, although I didn’t enjoy listening to the album as much as I thought I would. The single PILLOWTALK was released a few months earlier than the album, which lead to a lot of hype that Mind of Mine simply hasn’t lived up to. It’s hard to say that any song on the album lives up to the quality of PILLOWTALK.

Her: Mind of Mine is a solid first solo effort from ZAYN but unfortunately just misses out on the mark. However, the album will definitely be a hit with the ladies and of course his dedicated fans that have followed him since his departure from arguably one of the biggest boy bands of all time. I absolutely loved listening to the album in full, though I think this is only the beginning of even better music to come from the singer.

Rating

His: 5/10

Her: 8/10

By Tom Falco and Naomi Avery

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