Glory Days [Import]

Ever since winning Britain's The X Factor in 2011, Little Mix have carved out a potent niche in the girl group pop market. While they certainly play well next to their similarly inclined contemporaries, they've ably set themselves apart from the post-Beyonc? pack by focusing on songs that straddle the line between retro-soul and modern bubblegum pop, while also showcasing their soulful, highly resonant vocal chops and saucy group chemistry. Their fourth studio album, 2016's Glory Days, is no exception and finds the group delivering a set of hooky, smartly crafted songs that balance swaggering, '60s-style R&B with stylish, electronic-tinged dance-pop. Produced by the duo of Henrik Barman Michelsen and Edvard Forre Erfjord, aka Electric, Glory Days is a robust, soulful album that makes the most of Little Mix's multi-voiced approach to pop. As on previous efforts, showcased here are Little Mix vocalists Perrie Edwards, Jesy Nelson, Leigh-Anne Pinnock, and Jade Thirlwall. Together, they come off like a spunky, millennial version of '90s divas En Vogue crossed with Shakira. The comparison works especially nicely when considering the album's more dynamic offerings, like the anthemic, Mumford & Sons-ish "Shout Out to My Ex," the synthy, salsa-inflected "Touch," and the rousing, brass band-accented "You Gotta Not." These are catchy, deeply rhythmic songs, arranged with a mix of horns, guitars, and keyboards and also benefiting from the group's added layer of empowered, female-positive lyrics. Elsewhere, Little Mix strike a cheeky, classic girl group stance on the '60s-sounding "F.U." and the equally retro-leaning, Brill Building-esque "Oops," featuring Charlie Puth. Also compelling is the way the group infuses the EDM-influenced cuts like "Down & Dirty" and the soaring, synth-heavy "Nothing Else Matters" with a enough believably emotional vocal grit to keep things from getting too slick. Ultimately, Little Mix's vocal grit and sassy group chemistry make Glory Days such a celebratory album. ~ Matt Collar