How can these four girls keep topping their best? Fourth studio album Glory Days certainly promises to be their most accomplished collection yet, but does it deliver? Here’s exclusive track-by-track review.

1. ‘SHOUT OUT TO MY EX’

Little Mix’s fourth chart-topper in the UK is their most personal smash hit ever. It doesn’t take a private investigator to work out who the subject is, but the girls get their own back on the unreliable former
fiancé with plenty of clapback lyrics, solid sisterhood and one enormous chorus. Its mix of personal insight and fun ferociousness sets the agenda for Glory Days decorously.

2. ‘TOUCH’

After putting that ex in his place, Little Mix are strutting into the club with ‘Touch’. This is the first time the girl group have gone full shimmering club anthem, and their powerful vocals and fierce delivery fit it perfectly. There’s a seductive bass line, the beats pop in all the right places, and there are clicks ready for some on-point choreography. “Just a touch of your love is enough to take control of my whole body,” they flirt on the chorus. Just a few seconds of this song is enough to take control of our whole body for sure.

3. ‘F.U.’

When it comes to a throwback ’50s sway, Little Mix have a reputation for playing the sweet and flirtatious girls so well (like on ‘Love Me Like You’ for example). But here on ‘F.U.’ that classic sound is given plenty of Girl Power bite. “You’re cheating, you’re lying, I know that you’re hiding two cellphones,” they warn their unreliable boyfriend. It’s a tasty twist on the traditional love song format, giving two fingers up to being treated wrongfully while fluttering their eyelashes.

4. ‘OOPS’

It looks like we have a new rebound anthem, people. “Oops my baby, you woke up in my bed / Oops we broke up, we’re best off as friends,” Little Mix coo on the doo-wop chorus, which is a total earworm. It’s hard to not be swept up with the melody of this one, as well as its addictive whistle line. We’re still in ’50s pop territory, but there’s enough bounce here to make it an album highlight. Charlie Puth also puts in an appearance as the other half, and his warm tone fits nicely opposite the girls’ soulful vocals.

5. ‘YOU GOTTA NOT’

Sass level overload. Little Mix are back to put the men in their life straight, but over hip-wiggling beats of course. There’s a huge airy chorus of the girls complaining that they need a man, so all the boys out there take note. It’s co-written by Grammy-winning singer Meghan Trainor, so obviously there’s a hook that catches you and refuses to let go. It’s buoyant, fun and knowingly fierce. Oh and the lyric “Is you afraid of Blue’s Clues?” is still 100% amazing.

6. ‘DOWN & DIRTY’

With a title like ‘Down & Dirty’ is it any surprise that this is a filthy electronic number for the club? In the best possible way of course. And it gets to business right from the off, as Jesy declares: “I’m tasty, delicious, I’m rough around the edges.” Same. It builds with synths and pulsating beats throughout, before dropping into trap-pop on the chorus where we can only imagine the seductive routine the girls are dreaming up for this one. Oh and there’s probably a lyric the Education Secretary will raise an eyebrow at: “Glad I didn’t listen to my teachers / Teachers teach you not to be a dreamer.” They have a point though. As fans of Game of Thrones, we also majorly enjoyed the Daenerys shout out too.

7. ‘POWER’

Vroom vroom. Little Mix fire up their motorbike engines for this Wild West-meets-Tomorrowland Festival blowout. Twangy guitars give way to a storming electronic chorus – and we need to speak about the girls’ vocals on this track. It’s their most ferocious delivery with raspy growls and big declarations on the hook. You can almost smell the burning rubber on the roads from them revving up their engines.

8. ‘YOUR LOVE’

After getting messed around by their beaus earlier in the album, ‘Your Love’ is a straight-up slice of romance with an airy chorus of glowing electronics and almost Lion King-worthy chants. There’s no other way of describing this than it feeling like 3 minutes and 27 seconds of being whisked away to a warm paradise island of joy. With an all-you-can-eat buffet as well, of course. It’s easily the most uplifting track on Glory Days.

9. ‘NOBODY LIKE YOU’

Here comes the big ballad moment. While ‘Shout Out To My Ex’ was the big middle finger up to that former flame, ‘Nobody Like You’ is the more vulnerable side to the break-up. “Stop making up excuses when it hurts,” Jesy sings on the largely stripped-back production, while some of the delivery is so emotionally-charged it sounds like they could burst into tears at any moment. It’s powerful and lifted even further at the end with echoed piano and strings. “I’ve tried goodbye a hundred times / Not one of them true.” Weep.

10. ‘NO MORE SAD SONGS’

Now that the break-up has well and truly sunk in, the girls are trying to put it behind them by getting back out there and enjoying their lives again. The one request? No more sad songs, obviously. “I’m still trying to put this behind me / I still want to know who’s taking you home,” Perrie admits on the verse, before it bursts into a spirited electronic-tinged chorus that you can really get swept up in with its addictive squiggles. It’s a beautifully defiant twist on a subtle club banger, and Perrie’s big vocal run at the end is a real moment.

11. ‘PRIVATE SHOW’

Quite possibly the most unexpected track on Glory Days, ‘Private Show’ hears Little Mix channel some of the very best influences from the ’00s. Think a dash of Christina Aguilera’s persuasion and a spot of Christina Milian’s peppiness with a slight whiff of Misteeq’s street sensibility. Sharp brass gives it bounce, rattling beats give it energy and the chorus will have pretty much everyone lip-syncing for their legacy. It’s that mighty.

12. ‘NOTHING ELSE MATTERS’

You just know that this is going to be the big empowering moment at Little Mix’s huge arena shows next year. “Nothing else matters but us,” they chant over crashing beats and an ’80s-influenced driving synth line, all coming together to deliver an effective finale. There’s even the part where you can imagine crowds of thousands clapping along. It’s a blissful sentiment to end with on an album that largely deals with heartbreak and love.

Source: digitalspy.com