Union J - S/T

*****

Hot on the heals of One Direction!

Union J missed out on winning the X-Factor coming fourth place on the show, I think this was because of age and experience and the fact they were on the show with James Arthur who has one of the best voices in music at the moment. Missing out on the top spot of the X-Factor is not always a bad thing and Union J were still snapped up by Simon Cowell's label SYCOmusic so they still did very well for themselves. This boy band is what all boy bands should be good looking boys singing about love and their life. I like how when I got the album it came with a outer digi pack sleeve featuring one of the members of the band. So all the girls and some of you boys can pick your favourite member... I picked JJ Hamblett because I like the picture the most, not that he is my favourite honest. I think the one that was the most popular in the band must be George Shelley (Yes the one that looks like Harry Styles) because that edition is always Sold Out!!!.

The album opens with 'Carry You'  a nice tune about when things get you down and that you will fight on and look after the people you love. This is a great well written Pop song and the vocals really work well together, it has a slight Dance beat to it and is perfect for the radio so hense why they released it as their second single. This track also reminds me of The Wanted in places, which is a Pop band I really like so this is a really good thing. They start this album off really strong with the second single 'Beautiful Life' as the second track so you have both single strait at you when you listen to the CD. This song has a nice acoustic line and drum beat to it and the harmonies of the singers vocals really work well together. 

They continue with this strength with the third single 'Loving you is Easy' which also has a vibe of The Wanted and nice high pitch vocals. This is a get yourself on the dance floor type of song and could be my favourite track on the album. The layers are really nice and work well together and I would not have guessed straight away that it was a Union J song. The 'Last Goodbye' is a nice love song that the band really seem to connect with and sounds like a modern but classic Pop song at the same time. It is a simple song and easily written but sometimes that is a good thing.

'Beethoven' is a more up tempo song and again contains the acoustic guitar, love all the twists and changes in this. I think that Union J's vocals are a lot stronger than One Direction each member is very strong, from Josh one of the leading members to the shy George who I think even plays some of the guitar lines and was the one added to the group on the show by Dreelan to make them a strong three piece rather than a three piece. They were originally were called Triple J due to all the members having the letter J in their first name and with the adding of George they changed the name to Union J because it was the union of two acts and he didn't have J has a first letter of his name.

'Save the last Dance' really shows how they can use their voice to a good impact on the user. This has a Eurodance vibe to it and each vocal line really stands out, the mix is really good on this song and it could be a big summer hit. Well if they are brave enough to release it because it is so different to the singles they have released already. 'Amaze Me' has a beautiful keyboard line that I am really impressed with from the start and the versatility of the vocals on this track and the difference between them really comes into it's own. This is a really nice song that could have been done by Westlife when they were at their best, but I don't think Westlife could have done it this well. Shows the great writing by Karren Poole and Steve Mac who always do songs to a very high standard, but you can't dismiss what Wayne Hector has put in on this album his style is distinctive and you can tell when he is on a record.

Last track 'Skyscraper' which has been made famous recently by 2013 X-Factor winner Sam Bailey, who took it to No.1. I never really cared for her version but I quite enjoyed this one, it's has some nice key changes and reminds me of some Westlife songs and ends off the album well. If you like Pop music and boy bands I would strongly recommend this album, I was actually amazed how good it was. I didn't think the album would be this good and it was a really nice surprise, I think One Direction should be very afraid, Union J are your next big boy band the improvement from X-Factor is staggering.

Review by Dan Devour

Check Out! the Video for 'Loving you is Easy' Below...