David Guetta – Listen
3.5/5
French DJ David Guetta has enlisted the help of a long list of pop stars to collaborate on his sixth studio album Listen. Ranging from up and coming singer Sam Martin, to established vocalists such as Sia and John Legend, Listen is fun from start to finish.
Although this is a David Guetta album, Sam Martin steals the show in the opening track “Dangerous“. A dramatic string arrangement builds into a funk riff that clashes together electro-synth and disco-era groove. Between the catchy riff and Martin’s vocal style, “Dangerous” is sure to get stuck in your head. The American vocalist shares his voice once more for Listen’s second hit track “Lovers On the Sun“. Thumping bass, mixed together with powerful vocals and an addictive electronic melody, the album’s fourth track closely resembles something from an Avicii album (which is probably a good thing).
“What I Did For Love“ is a promising favourite on the album, with the right song elements to be a pop and dance hit. The talented Emeli Sandé loans her skill to blanket over an upbeat BPM and splashy melody.
Jumping ahead to “Goodbye Friend”, which features Irish pop group The Script is just another example of the chart-topping track list from Listen.
Amongst the high quality pop tracks, the all-star DJ enlists a wide range of vocalist, one of which is Ladysmith Black Mambazo on the track “Lift Me Up”.
John Legend makes his appearance on the R&B, piano-lead title track “Listen”. Essentially a club remix of a traditional John Legend song, “Listen” is climactic and combines the elegance of Legend supported by a string section, and the club style of Guetta.
Sia shares her expansive and powerful vocals for two tracks, “Bang My Head” and “The Whisperer”. The former reminds the listener of Sia’s hit “Chandelier” with her dynamic vocal style and the crashing instrumentations of Guetta’s DJ control pad. While “The Whisperer” opens with a beautiful piano intro, grazing against Sia’s sweeping vocals. As the final track on the album, it switches gears to close off Listen with power and grace.
Adjusting his DJ style to aim towards trap, David Guetta features Nicki Minaj on the track “Hey Mama“, showing off her hip-hop dominance. “Sun Goes Down” brings a hint of reggae to the album, featuring MAGIC!, followed by OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder on the track “S.T.O.P”.
With every track carrying the potential to be a star-studded hit, Listen keeps the 47-year old DJ near the top of the charts and proves that age is just a number.
