‘Four’
One Direction (Columbia/Syco)
3.5 stars out of 5
No matter what you think about British boy band One Direction — and opinions tend to vary wildly based on gender lines — there’s no arguing with the success of the quintet in recent years. The lads have sold 46 million albums (and counting) since their November 2011 debut and aptly-titled fourth full-length “Four” figures to up those numbers considerably.
Though I’m not a hardcore One-D fan, I have to give Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Zayb Malik credit for trying to give their fans something (a little) different every time out. The songs have gotten a bit more grown-up over the years and there’s a chance these guys can extend their career beyond teen idol status.
“Four” is a good, but not quite great gathering of 12 tunes that should appeal to their fans and probably help add to their 109 million Twitter followers and 33 million Facebook friends. “Steal My Girl” sets the tone for the record, and One Direction later shine on “Where Do Broken Hearts Go,” “18,” “No Control,” “Fireproof,” “Stockholm Syndrome” and “Clouds.” (Jeffrey Sisk)
