By guest blogger Sarah Hamilton from Popledge UK
I have always liked John and Edward Grimes, their energy and love for life is energising and infectious. I also find them extremely funny to watch and have always found people who don’t like them to actually be jealous of their success and happiness in life.
But have I ever properly listened to a Jedward album? Well no. I have enjoyed some of their singles especially ‘Lipstick’ and ‘Bad Behaviour’ but I have never sought out a full album from the twins. Scarily the boys are now on their third album since the X Factor back in 2009 having released one a year since they left the show. So it really is time for me to get my Jepic on and review their latest release called ‘Young Love.’
This is a track-by-track review of their iTunes deluxe album with some summary thoughts at the end of the post.
- Waterline – the album starts off with this big and fun track, the twins took this song to Eurovision 2012 for their native Ireland and it ended up charting all around the continent as a result. It is hard not to compare it to Lipstick which was also a Eurovision track back in 2011, to me Waterline is the lesser of the two tracks but it is still a strong opening track.
- Young Love – this is very Justin Bieber in it’s approach to the sound of the track and also their vocals. Very similar to ‘All Around the World’ by Biebs. The lyrics are very cute but I can’t see it appealing to post-tweens.
- What’s Your Number – this is a very ‘Jedward’ sounding track, again it really reminds me of another track – Avril Lavigne’s ‘Girlfriend’ but from a male perspective. Again the lyrics are directed towards younger listeners, but I don’t grudge them for that, that is their primary market. The track builds nicely but I do object to the ‘hey girl, you look like you need a boyfriend’ lyric – girls if you want a boyfriend then get one, but no-body needs one!
- A Girl Like You – this again reminds me of pop of old, this time it’s Busted in their early years! Again lyrics are aimed at young female listeners and the ‘digital generation’ with their talk of twitter. It’s a lot of fun though, I did find myself nodding my head along when the guitars started! I can imagine it being on a teen movie sound-track.
- Luminous – this is the first track on the album that really made my ears prick up – it’s such a strong track, it really fits into the current pop market and the likes of the Wanted and their track ‘Lightening’. I also like the fact that if you played this to someone without telling them it was Jedward then they would probably say they liked it. That is always the problem that Jedward will face with their music, getting people to take them seriously..this track should help them gain some respect from their peers though. Definitely my favourite so far, the boys also tweeted last night (30th) that they have just finished the official video for the track – can’t wait to see it!
- Give It Up – I also really enjoyed this track, it follows on from Luminous really well, the whistling sections of the track are also very catchy, I could easily imagine One Direction putting this track on their next album. The lyrics tell of a couple who has perhaps broken up, but the person singing the track knows that their partner still loves them and will hence ‘give it up’ to them.
- Happens in the Dark – this is another track that reminds me of another artist, this time it’s Kelly Clarkson due to the guitar sound on the track. In fact it’s like her mixed in with some The Wanted. Again I don’t think people would realise it was John and Edward singing, they seem to have really worked on their vocals and their craft since the X Factor and they should be praised for that. It would be very easy for them to just become TV presenters or entertainers rather than working on their singing skills.
- All I Want is You – another McFly-esq sound about getting the girl, the boys sing about rejecting material possessions to go after the girl of their dreams. Again another sweet track but it doesn’t stand out.
- What It Feels Like – a slower ballad from the boys, the structure of the song reminded me of some early N’Sync songs, it sounds a little dated compared to other tracks on ‘Young Love.’ I skipped the end of it..
- How Did You Know? – this track also passed me by until it got to around the 2 minute mark where it picked up a bit, their vocals are good on it and I liked the almost country style guitar in the background, but again I would skip past it..not enough impact for me.
- Can’t Forget You – thankfully this track picked up the pace again, the boys sound very ‘Jedward’ like on this track but again it’s more of an ‘album track’ to me rather than a single possibility..again I can imagine it being in a High School Musical type movie!
- P.O.V – I’m not a fan of songs with abbreviations in them in generally but I can look past it with this song, I enjoyed the bit of grit in this song and the different style of lyrics, it’s not love so much but rather a bit of revenge from the boys!
- Never Better – a song about being content with a situation in life, again I liked the lyrics because it’s more about independence (but perhaps that’s more of a reflection of my personal life
) and almost a ‘f you’ to the person that has maybe dumped or let them down. - Cool Heroes – for a bonus track this is really good! It’s more dance-orientated with a Chris Brown feel to it. The song is themed on super-heroes and upholds the Jedward message of just having fun and not giving a stuff about what other people think of them!
- School’s Out – I wasn’t so keen on this track, it’s another upbeat affair but I found the lyrics a bit ‘naff’ – it was a bit Year 6 disco for me.
I was disappointed to see that John and Edward have no song-writing credits on this album, they really need to get interested in that side of their careers if they want to make a long-term living from their songs. I also think this would help them with the ‘every song sounds like another artist’ point that I made throughout the review, they do need to find their own sound and identity musically. I’m not sure if the idea of a ‘concept’ album works for them either..I can see that the theme of the album was relationships and social lives but I didn’t necessarily see a journey emerging throughout the track. I was impressed by track ‘Luminous’ I hope that the public can but their pre-conceptions of the brand Jedward behind them and get behind the track.
I also really liked the digital booklet that came with the album and especially the Jedward album ‘mission statement’ which sums up the best thing about belonging to their fan group.
Overall popledge points – 6/10
