It has been two years since Avicii’s last formal, studio release, “True”. With his Sept. 2013 album, he took the industry by storm, producing a slew chart-topping hits like “Wake Me Up” and “Hey Brother” that would dominate the charts for months. Unlike Avicii’s previous album, "Stories" seems to rely on the same europop beats and big-name features that fans have grown used to, sandwiched between a few solid anthems that keep the album afloat.
The album starts off with an undeniable hit, "Waiting For Love," that chronicles the days of the week leading up to the weekend. The song's ultra-relatable lyrics such as, "Monday left me broken / Tuesday I was through with hoping," help the song stand out from the rest of the album, as well as completely inundating the listener in the lively, europop, synth beats that brought Avicii his fame.
From there, "Stories" feels incohesive and somewhat inconsequential. Order-wise, the album feels thrown together, like a conglomeration of singles that just needed a place to stay. There are very few smooth transitions, and the wide variety of features tries to showcase Avicii’s adaptability as a producer but ends up fusing generic beats with artists whose styles just don’t mix, like "Sunset Jesus" with Gavin Degraw and "Broken Arrows," with Zac Brown of the Zac Brown Band.
The album is not all bad, though. It ends on a high note with the anthems "Trouble" and "Gonna Love Ya" where Avicii showcases the familiar, yet eccentric Scandinavian-meets-homegrown American electro-pop sound that listeners have loved since the beginning of his career.
Though "Stories" misses the mark as a whole, the few standalone hits Avicii produced prove there may still be more in store from this young, instant star.
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