Made in the A.M. is the fifth studio album by the English-Irish boy bandOne Direction, released on 13 November 2015, by Columbia Records and Syco Music. The album is the group's first without member Zayn Malik, who left the group in March 2015, and will be their last before taking an extended hiatus in 2016.[3] The album was preceded by the internationally successful singles "Drag Me Down", released on 31 July 2015 and "Perfect", released on 16 October 2015.
Upon its release, the record has received generally favourable reviews from critics. It debuted atop the UK Albums Chart with 93,189 copies sold and at number two on the US Billboard 200 with 459,000 first-week sales. Even though it became the band's first album not to top the chart, its first-week sales were higher than previous number one album Four, which reached the summit with a lower 387,000 first-week sales in 2014. Elsewhere the album reached number one in Ireland, Italy, Scotland, Finland and Belgium as well as reaching the top-three in most other markets.
Background
The album was announced on 22 September 2015.[4] Following the release of its lead single, "Drag Me Down", it was revealed that the group would going on hiatus in 2016 to take a break and pursue solo careers.[5] On 22 September, the title for the fifth studio album, Made in the A.M., was officially announced along with promotional single "Infinity" being released.[6] The group began to reveal the track listing on their Snapchat stories to which it was later confirmed on iTunes.[7]
Julian Bunetta, the producer/songwriter behind many of the group’s singles, told Billboard that One Direction’s fifth album was recorded with the four members knowing it would be their last for a while. “There was a feeling of, ‘Well, we’re going to take a break, and anything in the world can happen during that time off,’ adding “There’s a song about losing someone that isn’t Zayn. There’s also a song about the band being on shaky ground and not knowing what the future is. There are songs about love, there’s a song that is a little more sexually charged. It’s all over the map.”[3]
Promotion and release
Singles
"Drag Me Down" was issued as the album's lead single on 31 July 2015 and debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart, breaking the record for the most streamed song in a week, with 2.03 million plays. In the United States, the song debuted at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, with 350,000 downloads in its first week, earning the band their largest sales week ever.[8][9] "Perfect" was serviced as the album's second single on 16 October 2015.[10][11][12] The song debuted at number two in the UK and number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Its debut gave the band their fifth top 10 start on the Hot 100, passing the record among groups of four debuts, previously held by The Beatles.[13][14]
"Infinity" was issued as a promotional single on the iTunes Store and Apple Music on 22 September 2015. "What a Feeling" was released as the second promotional single, two days prior the album's release date.[15]
Made in the A.M. has received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a "weighted average" rating out of 100 from selected independent ratings and reviews from mainstream critics, the album received a Metascore of 65, based on 11 reviews, indicating "generally favourable reviews."[16]
Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph found that a "slight tone of weariness may have crept into 1D's lyrics with songs about break-ups and yearning for home" but concluded that the music remains "anthemic, up-tempo, superior pop, with elegant song structure, ear-worm hooks and radio-busting choruses."[1] Although Kenneth Partridge of Billboard magazine declared that the album "could be the band's Abbey Road" and awarded it four stars, he also critiqued the group as a "prefab 21st-century pop machine" who churns out "boilerplate love songs that rarely feel personal or look beyond" their "vacuum-sealed bubble-gum world".[19] In a review for Rolling Stone, editor Rob Sheffield thought the album is "1D's Let It Be, the kind of record the world's biggest pop group makes when it's time to say thanks for the memories". About the album's sound, he noted it is "chasing the rock vibe of Midnight Memories and Four."[2] Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly complimented the album for being "another deft collection of shiny, hermetically sealed anthems".[21]
Commercial performance
Made in the A.M. debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 with 459,000 album units (402,000 pure album sales), making it their first album not to debut at number one.[25] In the UK, the album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart, with first-week sales of 93,189, becoming their fourth album to top the chart and the fastest selling album of 2015 so far. The album was certified Silver by the BPI in its first week.[26]
^"Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 47.Týden 2015 on the field besides the words "CZ – ALBUMS – TOP 100" to retrieve the correct chart. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
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