Union J - Loving You Is Easy

"Finding you was so hard"

After hearing the pair of tepid singles released prior to Union J's album, I was not at all excited to see what the guys had in store. Although I liked them well enough on last year's X-Factor UK, they weren't even my favorite boyband of that series. I'm not sure what made me listen to their album, then. Curiosity, and lack of any other notable releases this week, I guess. Luckily, I was in for a very nice surprise. While the album doesn't include the high-brand pop of bigger bands like One Direction or The Wanted, it's pleasingly uptempo throughout (unlike the singles) and quite catchy and well-produced, if a bit anonymous-sounding. Loving You Is Easy, with its big, soaring instrumental and choir-like refrain towards the end, is one of my favorites. This song seems to have an interesting history of... let's say... being passed around from artist to artist. Originally written by Jason Derulo, both Union J and fellow teen popstar Austin Mahone have recorded a version. As far as vocal prowess, I'd give the edge to Union J, but Austin's currently the bigger name internationally so it will be interesting to see what happens if he ends up releasing it as well. Either way, a good pop song is a good pop song.



(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. Buy the album here. Follow me on twitter and facebook.

Union J - Carry You

"You've been running for hours and can't catch your breath"

X-Factor UK sure knows how to churn them out. Although we're still waiting for the Amelia Lily album (being delayed as often as it has is not a great sign), we've now got the first official single from last year's competition. Union J were a cobbled together boyband (One Direction style) that ended up finishing fourth. They were one of two boybands in the competition and were honestly the less interesting of the two, but the one with more commercial appeal. The single's sort of the same. I like it, but I'm not wowed by it. It's very much in the style of fellow Brit boyband The Wanted. Polished, mid-tempo and kind of adult-contemporary. I'm curious to see where they go from here. They could either go on to be the next Westlife or the next One True Voice. I hate to say I'm concerned that they're leaning toward the latter, but I wish them well and I hope this song is successful for them!



(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists. Preorder the track here. Follow me on twitter and facebook.