31 October 2013
When I grow up and become mature, I plan to move away from writing about Ireland’s bad music purchases into doing something more respected and respectable, like crime. For boybands, maturity tends to mean wearing suits and singing sentimental ballads about being married. In the ’90s this meant piano ones by The Piano-Playing One. In the ’00s it became gospel-lite inspo content with the occasional outbreak of Rat Pack cosplay. By the time One Direction reached the age of shaving in mid-2013, though, the milquetoast folk-pop of Coldplay, Mumford & Sons and especially Ed Sheeran had gotten into the town water supply. So, ‘Story Of My Life’ is 1D’s ripening from randy-teen pop into contemplative semi-acoustic balladry. You’ll find the exits here, here and here.
Happily, ‘Story Of My Life’ is better than that dread scenario. Like Niall’s solo work, it wears its acoustic folk-pop stylings lightly and good-naturedly. Like Harry’s solo work, it has a memorable soaring chorus without recourse to histrionics. And the overall vibe is thoughtful and wistful rather than self-absorbed and maudlin. I liked it then, I like it now, and I’ll like it a lot more than the 2017 Ed-pocalypse to come. Perhaps I’ve been mature all along.
