Album Review: Una Healy — ‘The Waiting Game’
Irish singer-songwriter Una Healy rose to fame as a member of The Saturdays, a girlgroup well-known for its hits “Up” and “What About Us”.
Now that the band is on hiatus, Una released her debut solo album The Waiting Game. The record features twelve country- and folk-influenced popsongs, marking a clear departure from the electropop sound of The Saturdays.
Let’s dive right into The Waiting Game and find out how well the change of genre was executed.
1. “Battlelines” (9/10)
The album opener is an uptempo country-pop hybrid that immediately gets you hooked. Even though it deals with a love gone sour, the track is anything but melodramatic and downbeat. “Light your battlelines,” Una demands. “Don’t hide the fire that burns inside.”
The song’s powerful chorus and fast verses radiate optimism and zest for life, making it a perfect roadtrip song. You’ll soon find yourself belting the chorus out at the top of your lungs. Trust me, it’s going to happen.
2. “The Waiting Game” (9/10)
The roadtrip continues with the title track of the album, another song with a serious topic and a positive outlook on the future. The central message of “The Waiting Game” is that “even when you’re living through the worst you know the best is yet to come.”
“Give me stormy skies, give me higher walls to climb,” Una confidently sings on the catchy chorus, inspiring the listener to keep their head up and try again. Sure, the lyrics are far from revolutionary, but in the case of “The Waiting Game” they don’t need to be. If you’re in a bad mood, and nothing seems to work out for you, a few spins of this gem will make you feel a whole lot better.
3. “Stay My Love” feat. Sam Palladio (6/10)
The lead single of The Waiting Game is a romantic downtempo ballad, featuring country singer-songwriter Sam Palladio. The lyrics of “Stay My Love” are pretty mehhh, but the melodies and the vocals are beautiful, creating a soundscape that couldn’t be any more different from the music of The Saturdays.
That is possibly the main reason why “Stay My Love” was chosen as Una’s first solo single. Frankly, The Waiting Game has much better tracks to offer, two of which preceeded this one.
4. “All You Ever Need Is Love” (7/10)
Does the title of this song sound exciting? No, it doesn’t.
Do we need another all-you-need-is-love kind of track? No, we definitely don’t.
Is this particular song still quite enjoyable? Yes, it is.
Is it saved by Una’s ability to write amazing chorus hooks? Yes, it definitely is.
5. “S.O.S.” (6/10)
This is an alright song. Not a bad one and not an amazing one. The midtempo verses are alright, the simple chorus is alright, the lyrics are alright, Una’s vocals are alright.
“S.O.S.” is a by-the-book album track. Not good enough to be a single, not bad enough to be scrapped.
6. “Please Don’t Tell Me” (6/10)
The series of okay-but-not-brilliant songs continues with “Please Don’t Tell Me”, a classic downtempo heartbreak ballad. Everything that was just said about “S.O.S.” is also true for this one.
So let’s not linger longer than necessary and quickly move on to the next track, which is much more interesting.
7. “Staring At The Moon” (10/10)
The album returns to uptempo territory with the masterpiece “Staring At The Moon”. Una wrote the song for her daughter, assuring her that she’ll always be by her side even when she’s far away. While it showcases Una’s talent as a songwriter, what really makes it a standout is the incredibly catchy “ooh la la la” bit in the chorus.
“Staring At The Moon” is the perfect summer song. It’s infectious, it’s upbeat, and it even has a great message. So let’s whisper the word “single”, shall we? On second thought, let’s shout it: Next single, please!
8. “Alarm Bells” (8/10)
On to the least country- and most pop-sounding song on the album. With its straightforward instrumentation and irresistable hooks, “Alarm Bells” wouldn’t sound out of place on a Girls Aloud record.
Even if Una’s decision to opt for a less charts-oriented sound on her debut album is a welcome one, who would say ‘no’ to a well-written pop hit?
9. “Craving You” (6/10)
After its pop moment, The Waiting Game immediately returns to midtempo country with “Craving You”. The lyrics aren’t particularly exciting, with lines like “I just can’t get enough, it’s true,” or “you’re like a rush through my blood.” We’ve heard that before, haven’t we? About a thousand times, at least.
Fortunately, Una has once again penned a pretty catchy chorus, which elevates “Craving You” from a catastrophe to an alright album track with a sugar sweet country sound.
10. “Out The Door” (8/10)
Track number 10 on The Waiting Game is the slower sister song to “Staring At The Moon”. Like that earlier album highlight, “Out The Door” was written for Una’s daughter. The singer-songwriter explains why she has to leave home from time to time and puts into words how much she misses her daughter when she’s away.
The lyrics are rather simple, especially on the straightforward chorus: “Oooh, I miss you baby. Oooh, I miss you so. I just wanna say I miss you lately; a million times more every time I’m out the door.”
In contrast to “Craving You”, however, “Out The Door” works well with such simple lines, precisely because it was written for a child. The song balances on the line between children’s song and country track quite impressively. Besides, the verse melodies are pretty fantastic.
11. “Grow Up Not Old” (10/10)
“Staring At The Moon” got a ten out of ten rating because it has amazing melodies and great lyrics. “Grow Up Not Old” gets the same score because it has amazing lyrics and great melodies.
In the first verse, Una remembers her youth and addresses her husband: “I met you at twenty-three, we filled our heads with crazy dreams. Get a house and settle down, can’t believe that time is now.” Then the topic of change is introduced: “People say you gotta change one day, you gotta act your age.” Una distances herself from that notion, wondering, “why should we stop being ourselves?”
The heart of the song is its happy-go-lucky chorus, which brims with youthful folly and joyful naïveté. “I wanna grow up, but I don’t wanna grow old,” Una proclaims. “I wanna look in your eyes like the first time and always be as young as we are tonight.”
Of all the optimistic, summery gems on The Waiting Game, this is the most impressive one. Zest for life has seldom sounded this good.
12. “Angel Like You” (7/10)
Album closers are just as important as album openers. After having finished listening to a new record, you don’t want to be left with a sense of: ughh, that was a boring farewell. Una’s The Waiting Game has a strong opener with “Battlelines”. But is “Angel Like You” a worthy closer?
Yes, it is.
The angel metaphor is, of course, absolutely worn-out and kind of cringeworthy. At least in this context it’s used to describe somebody who actually passed away and not just an ostensibly perfect lover. Besides, the title of the song is the worst part of it. The rest is truly quite enjoyable and less cheesy than one might expect.
“Can’t believe how much has changed in only half a year,” Una muses in the beginning. “Can’t believe you never saw the summer.” Most of us have lost somebody who went a little too soon, and this song quite aptly describes our feelings about that person, which is why it was used for the film Mum’s List.
“Angel Like You” is not exactly an album highlight, but it creates an appropriately intimate and reflective moment at the end of The Waiting Game. It wouldn’t work as a single, but it does work as an album closer.
Overall: 8/10
Even though there are a few filler tracks on The Waiting Game, the album is still a highly enjoyable country-pop experience.
Songs like “Grow Up Not Old” and “Battlelines” showcase Una’s songwriting ability, while “Staring At The Moon” and the title track impress with catchy-as-hell melodies you can belt out on your next roadtrip.
Una Healy’s decision to distance herself from the electropop sound of her band The Saturdays to focus on a more guitar-based approach has certainly paid off. The Waiting Game is the perfect album for the spring to come.
Follow Una Healy on her social media and buy The Waiting Game wherever music is sold.
