Memories: Do Not Open
by The Chainsmokers
User Score
2.1

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 573 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 93 out of 573
  2. Mixed: 35 out of 573
  3. Negative: 445 out of 573
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  1. AShinyG1ratina
    Jun 21, 2022
    0
    Better than I expected it to be at the very least. It still made me want to leave this mortal plane in a bad way.
  2. JeanMarcos_
    May 7, 2021
    3
    Ok, this is not a stupidly horrible album, the musics are "ok", but do they need to sound EXACTLY THE SAME? The musics in this album are acceptable, but they def don't have personality enough to be memorable or even distinguishable, it's even exaustive to listen to this album, but the last track "Last Day Alive" gets to be a nice surprise in the middle of such a messy album.
  3. Hoosickodi77
    Sep 1, 2020
    0
    this is horrific. this is horrificthis is horrificthis is horrificthis is horrificthis is horrific hh
  4. andyn823
    Jun 14, 2020
    1
    Okay, this album is bad. I don't even think this is an EDM album, I think it's more than a plain pop album rather than an EDM album, and are The Chainsmokers DJs? Why did they make a pop album rather than an EDM album? It's mediocre and unmemorable. I am bored.
  5. freeKade1ka
    Nov 26, 2019
    1
    1/10 only for something just like this, coldplay saved this mediocre from total failure
  6. JoanneGrant
    Jul 2, 2018
    0
    This was totally trashy. Literally just 12 remix versions of Closer. Even featuring Coldplay on "Something Just Like This" can't save the album and the song itself. And Andrew should stop singing because his vocal ruins every song that features his singing in this album lol
  7. Guus2002
    Mar 9, 2018
    1
    This album is terrible. Normally i write a small introduction before i talk about the album, but here it doesn't fit. This album is awful. I listened to it last night and it got worse overtime. There are no redeeming qualities on this record. It's one repetitive, bland, dumb listen.

    The first three songs just destroy any sort-of-hopes you could have. What really shines through here, and    This album is terrible. Normally i write a small introduction before i talk about the album, but here it doesn't fit. This album is awful. I listened to it last night and it got worse overtime. There are no redeeming qualities on this record. It's one repetitive, bland, dumb listen.

    The first three songs just destroy any sort-of-hopes you could have. What really shines through here, and as well as the rest of the album, is the target for this record: teenagers. This should be relateble to teens or whatever. Maybe it is for some teens. A teen myself, these songs are so far distanced from reality, it feels like a fantasy world. The worst of these three is probably break up every night.

    'She wants to break up every night. Then tries to **** me back to life'. I rest my case. The vocals are also very weak. It seems like this guy can't sing very well. This album also isn't very original. It feels like I'm listening for 42 minutes to weak EDM songs. The drops also are awful. The drops should be like a big moment and here it just feels like a small fart.

    You know what? I should just stop here. I wanna forget this album and stop projecting negativity into the world

    Overall consensus: Pandering to teens, but reaching no one, do not open sums this album up quiet nice    … Expand
  8. DavidWasHere
    Nov 17, 2017
    3
    Not good. This is not good. The only reason why I listened to this is because I'm pretty sure my friend is going to do a year-end video and I wanna be prepared to trash on all the bad music out there. The Chainsmokers are a joke. They started out as a joke band that made terrible "comedy" music and turned into making artificial dance music. It's super generic when you compare it to all theNot good. This is not good. The only reason why I listened to this is because I'm pretty sure my friend is going to do a year-end video and I wanna be prepared to trash on all the bad music out there. The Chainsmokers are a joke. They started out as a joke band that made terrible "comedy" music and turned into making artificial dance music. It's super generic when you compare it to all the big name EDM superstars out there like Avicii, Calvin Harris, Diplo, David Guetta, Skrillex's more poppier stuff. Their songs try to be bigger and having a deep meaning, but it's mostly just shallow as hell lyrics that can relate to shallow as hell people. The compositions are by the numbers and super bland with a few exceptions here and there, and the drops usually kill any momentum that the tunes could have. And then there's Paris that completely rips off M83's Midnight City and yet somehow Paris is a worldwide hit and Midnight City isn't **** YOU WORLD) Andrew Taggard is a terrible vocalist. Songs like the One and Break Up Every Night are him sounding so flat and horribly pitchy it's just super unflattery, especially for Break Up Every Night which is the most energetic song here but that singing is just terrible! There are songs where he is tolerable, like on Paris and Honest, but he's still so bland and lifeless. The guest singers fair much better, but that's not saying much, either from weak performance or the Chainsmokers not doing them favors with the tunes they are backed up with. Emily Warren sleepwalks on her spots, Louane at least tires on It Won't Kill Ya before the song turns into dubstep-lite, and even then it's not like super amazing or anything, to Jhene Aiko not fitting on whatever kind of R&B meets trap-pop monstrosity that's on Wake Up Alone, and Florida Georgia Line are so bland on Last Day Alive, if I wasn't told it was them I would not know. Which is not good considering that the songs composition is supposed to be larger than life* and yet their vocals are limp as hell! (the song is too weak to be bigger and anthemic BTW) The only song that's really good here is Something Just Like This, but that's mostly because of Chris Martin and the tune itself sounds like something that Coldplay can work with. This album's main purpose is being white noise on the radio and on the loudspeakers of convenience stores and appealing to shallow teenagers who worry about what happens on their Twitter and Instagram feeds.… Expand
  9. Recon97
    Oct 2, 2017
    1
    Well. i think The Chainsmokers have improved since "SELFIE"!... thats not saying much. Cheap production, just AWFUL vocals from Andrew Taggart, and some of the most unbearably simple lyrics I've ever heard. Don't buy this, its not worth your time. 1/10
  10. Tabor
    Sep 8, 2017
    1
    The Chainsmokers' first full length album, "Memories: Do Not Open" is Overwhelming and empty, and you know it is the second the last song "Last Day Alive" ends. It is almost like they took their commercially honored (and good, i'm not going to lie) hit "Closer" and changed the words. There you have it. I really hope that the chainsmokers' career ends fast, before they can manage to put outThe Chainsmokers' first full length album, "Memories: Do Not Open" is Overwhelming and empty, and you know it is the second the last song "Last Day Alive" ends. It is almost like they took their commercially honored (and good, i'm not going to lie) hit "Closer" and changed the words. There you have it. I really hope that the chainsmokers' career ends fast, before they can manage to put out another song because i, and many others believe that their short time should be over. All they provide are heartless synths and one note choruses (Maybe one highlight here or there, but do not count on it). I should have taken their and advice before i Opened up that CD case.… Expand
  11. samwich21
    Jul 25, 2017
    2
    Album: DO NOT LISTEN. I underestimated The Chainsmokers. I didn't believe that they would create the blandest pop album in all of history, but it appears that they have. The only track worth anyone's time is "Something Just Like This", a duet with Chris Martin of Coldplay. I'd be interested in hearing a version of this song WITHOUT The Chainsmokers. Drew should stick to DJing. He is NOT aAlbum: DO NOT LISTEN. I underestimated The Chainsmokers. I didn't believe that they would create the blandest pop album in all of history, but it appears that they have. The only track worth anyone's time is "Something Just Like This", a duet with Chris Martin of Coldplay. I'd be interested in hearing a version of this song WITHOUT The Chainsmokers. Drew should stick to DJing. He is NOT a good singer. The best tracks on the album are the ones where Drew never opens his mouth. I'm giving this album a two because of Coldplay. If Chris wasn't singing on "Something", I wouldn't even bother with this review.… Expand
  12. Msmsms
    Jul 25, 2017
    0
    This is one of the worst things I have ever heard in my entire life. It is extremely hard to get through not even 5 seconds of one song without having to throw up. Please. If your life is dear to you DO NOT listen to this trash.
  13. Wonderland28
    Jul 24, 2017
    0
    The Chainsmokers A.K.A. 2016's Pop Hit factory have shown through this album that they are incapable of stringing together more than one track to make a cohesive piece of work. This mish-mashed and clunky record feels more like a NOW album than a piece released by the biggest hitmakers of the current time.
  14. FruitJuice
    Jul 18, 2017
    1
    what........................................................................................................................................................................
  15. SocialKebab
    Jun 23, 2017
    1
    The whole album is just same **** pressed on over and over and over again ;D
    Literally only song considered "good" is "Something Just like this". The Chainsmokers is just big pile of crap who are just full of themselves. Repetitive crap. Like the album said... DO NOT OPEN, because it's so bad!
  16. popstyle
    Jun 20, 2017
    0
    Sabendo da má qualidade de seu album, a banda diz logo em seu titulo "Do not Open"(Não abra), com um aviso, pelo menos eles avisaram! O album é simplismente varios remixes da musica "Closer" que foi sem duvidas a pior de 2016. Então imagine o album cheio so com essa musica, não precisa imaginar porque The chainsmokers já o fez. Nenhuma criatividade, pessimas mixagens, letras pioresSabendo da má qualidade de seu album, a banda diz logo em seu titulo "Do not Open"(Não abra), com um aviso, pelo menos eles avisaram! O album é simplismente varios remixes da musica "Closer" que foi sem duvidas a pior de 2016. Então imagine o album cheio so com essa musica, não precisa imaginar porque The chainsmokers já o fez. Nenhuma criatividade, pessimas mixagens, letras piores ainda.Uma banda desnecessaria que alem de ter musicas horriveis, são pessoas horriveis.… Expand
  17. yulinbarak2001
    Jun 20, 2017
    0
    Lamentablemente estas "promesas" de la musica "EDM/Dance" que en un comienzo nos dejaron sorprendentes piezas musicales como ROZES Y DON'T LET ME DOWN, perdieron lamentablemente todo el potencial que tenían como Dj's, dejando una supuesta gran "variabilidad" entre canciones que desembocan y comienzan fracasadamente igual ya que quisieron reutilizar la escancie de su Smash-Hit, "Closer",Lamentablemente estas "promesas" de la musica "EDM/Dance" que en un comienzo nos dejaron sorprendentes piezas musicales como ROZES Y DON'T LET ME DOWN, perdieron lamentablemente todo el potencial que tenían como Dj's, dejando una supuesta gran "variabilidad" entre canciones que desembocan y comienzan fracasadamente igual ya que quisieron reutilizar la escancie de su Smash-Hit, "Closer", para seguir haciendo récords musicales en vez de los reconocimientos que te respaldan como un artista de gran talento y de gran potencial para sobresalir en la industria. En pocas palabras este álbum representa una canción que esta dividida en 13 versiones sin ningún sentido y gusto alguno, si te gusta "Closer" no te molestaras en cuando comienza y termina una canció; que tenían en un comienzo una gran gama de cupones para que las personas se afianzaran y se ganaran la música de estos Dj's que a la final solo dejan un intento de artista que solo les importa vender y no aportar nada a la música.… Expand
  18. vinnynguyen
    Jun 17, 2017
    1
    The only "good" tracks have already been released as singles. Most of the album is unbearable and closely resembles the cookie cutter EDM/Pop vibe that they've been using. Once you watch "How Every Chainsmokers Song is Written" by John Fassold, your outlook and perception of the album changes negatively, dramatically.
  19. NETMUSIC
    Jun 16, 2017
    2
    You scrapped Closer, Don't Let Me Down and All We Know for this crap. Seriously.

    Best Song(s):
    Paris

    Worst Song(s):
    Something Just Like This
    Break Up Every Night
    It Won't Kill Ya
    The One
    Honest
    Young
    Wake Up Alone
  20. AntonioUchoa
    Jun 15, 2017
    0
    Esses meninos deveriam ter vergonha de se rotularem dentro do estilo EDM. A mesma repetição de batidas, estilos em todas as músicas. Nada se salva, infelizmente. O pior é, não há como definir a pior faixa disso porque tudo é tão identico e "mainstreamzado".

    Vendo esses meninos ganhando grammys, percebemos que essa premiação premia somente os mais rentavéis para a industria musical ao    Esses meninos deveriam ter vergonha de se rotularem dentro do estilo EDM. A mesma repetição de batidas, estilos em todas as músicas. Nada se salva, infelizmente. O pior é, não há como definir a pior faixa disso porque tudo é tão identico e "mainstreamzado".

    Vendo esses meninos ganhando grammys, percebemos que essa premiação premia somente os mais rentavéis para a industria musical ao invés de premiar artistas de renome com talentos reais.    … Expand
  21. JadenCarter
    Jun 15, 2017
    2
    Closer and Roses plainly among those songs are remixes in each one tracks, they let us down so far, Only a few are salvageable from amid too much garbage as Something just like this and Don't let me down as well.
  22. fedemm
    Jun 9, 2017
    0
    The album is really bad. The twelve tracks sounds like remixed versions from a single song. Very dissapointing but not sorpresing. Sounds rushed and empty.
  23. freddiemercury
    Jun 2, 2017
    0
    look at my name.

    this is why i had aids.

    Joking aside this album is awful. Just awful. EDM, poor vocals, only good moments are other people and that's still horrible.
  24. GerardistheWay
    May 22, 2017
    3
    “Hey Alex.” “Yeah, Drew?” “Remember that ‘Closer’ song we did a while back? The one that was a big hit?” “Yeah, what about it?” “Okay, bear with me here...What if we made a whole album based on that song? We could use the same beat on some songs, similar music on others, and near-identical lyrics! It’ll be a huge hit!” “Oh my god, dude, that’s genius!"

    I believe I just accurately summed    “Hey Alex.” “Yeah, Drew?” “Remember that ‘Closer’ song we did a while back? The one that was a big hit?” “Yeah, what about it?” “Okay, bear with me here...What if we made a whole album based on that song? We could use the same beat on some songs, similar music on others, and near-identical lyrics! It’ll be a huge hit!” “Oh my god, dude, that’s genius!"

    I believe I just accurately summed up about how much creative effort went into EDM DJ duo The Chainsmokers’ latest pitiful effort, the limp and ineffectual “Memories…Do Not Open”, which gives a bad name to the recently blossomed “future bass” genre and electronic music in general. Most every song on the album shares similarities with their 2016 hit, and just like its predecessor it is ear-warm yet hollow, catchy but forgettable, with completely and totally generic production that does nothing to reward a closer listen with flourishing little sonic details. Alex Pall and Drew Taggart had a great opportunity to take themselves in a different direction and awe all their haters with a debut album that proved they weren’t just another DJ duo, and that is exactly what they did not do. Rather than bringing anything new, they’ve parked themselves squarely in the middle of the road, utilizing the established electropop basics and little else. They’re kinda like Owl City, but unlike Adam Young, whose hug-warm positivity still manages to be somewhat endearing even as it gets repetitive (he also possesses some real production talent), The Chainsmokers’ melancholy moping is just plain wearying.

    Pall and Taggart’s lyricism is perhaps the worst thing about this album, and that’s saying something. “I’m f**ked up, I’m fading/I’m so complicated”, Taggart croaks on one track. “And there’s this girl, she wants me to take her home/She don’t love me though, I’m just on the radio”, he sings (through gobs of auto-tune) on another. If millennials have chosen The Chainsmokers as their voice in the years to come, then they’ve certainly made the right decision, and that is not at all a compliment. They come off as whiny douches who expect everything to be given to them without doing anything to earn any of it, and when they don’t get it they take to the internet and social media to complain about how the world is so unfair. Combine that with dull, repetitive music (here’s their basic song structure: soft, sad-sounding piano/guitar that plods along at a downtempo pace before the synths join in after the hook for a “drop”) and production that is only passable at best considering the advances made in the genre as of late, and you have one of the most totally unlikable yet still somehow most popular music groups in the world both in our modern age and of all time.

    Even worse about this is that their inflated egos has led them, for whatever reason, to downplay the outside musical talent they bring to the table to complement their own lack thereof. Country duo Florida-Georgia Line in particular (an odd choice, but one that had potential based on their own party-based song repertoire) is put to absolute waste, providing glorified backing vocals on the pseudo-inspirational album closer ‘The Last Day Alive’; though not to the same degree, the likes of Jhené Aiko, Louane, and Emily Warren (who brings more to the table with her singing than her crappy songwriting) are likewise squandered. While it is not necessarily a good song, the current Top 40 hit 'Something Just Like This' is elevated to a tolerable level by Coldplay’s Chris Martin making the most of his guest appearance, providing what is probably the only ray of sunshine in a dark, roiling sea of angsty depression and bitter nostalgia.

    However, one thing no one can ever claim about The Chainsmokers is that they don’t know how to pick singles, which they most certainly do. “Bouquet” was an awful EP elevated by the strength of the single ‘Roses’; ditto “Collage”, which had the Grammy-winning ‘Don’t Let Me Down’ and the aforementioned ‘Closer’ to bolster it. The same goes for this album: ‘Something Just Like This’ is one of the better (speaking relatively here) tunes on the record, and the second single “Paris” is perhaps the best argument for them to ever be labeled “artists”. An ambient, atmospheric slow-burner of a track, it is by far the best thing they’ve yet to make in their short career, though that isn’t really saying much.

    Kids, it just goes to show you that if you want to be famous, you don’t need to be talented, or even a pleasant person to be around. You just need to be an overgrown man-child who spent a month interning at a recording studio in order to know enough about production to get by. May God have mercy on our souls if he ever gets to hear this. 3/10    … Expand
  25. Jasos
    May 20, 2017
    0
    Quando si pensa troppo ai soldi o a creare diss solo perché si vende di più, hai la conferma che si sta parlando di tutto meno che di artisti. Questo album ne é la prova, banale, trash, zero anima, poca emozione, scarsità sia a livello melodico che vocale/strumentale
  26. vinnythemax
    May 19, 2017
    0
    Absolute garbage. Worst artist ever. Who in this Earth can stand this disastrous group. I think they should just die of cancer. That is my review and I hope you like it.
  27. Music_Observer
    May 16, 2017
    3
    There was not one melody that got away from being lifeless and dreary, not one harmonic structure that gave hope for meaningful artistry, and no life from the awkward slow tempos and uninviting electronic beats, so let’s kill this thing before it breeds. My Score: 58/180 (Trash) = 3.2/10
  28. dark-phoenix
    May 15, 2017
    0
    Literally 12 versions of Closer. The lyrics try to be deep but are only chessy and corny, most of the songs talk about nothing - are just random words used to rhyme in random phrases about random things. To summe up: This is utter trash.
    Congratz Chainsmokers, you guys managed to release an album worse than Ed Sheeran's Divide and now claim the worst album of 2017.
    Also, this guy can't    Literally 12 versions of Closer. The lyrics try to be deep but are only chessy and corny, most of the songs talk about nothing - are just random words used to rhyme in random phrases about random things. To summe up: This is utter trash.
    Congratz Chainsmokers, you guys managed to release an album worse than Ed Sheeran's Divide and now claim the worst album of 2017.

    Also, this guy can't sing, he should stick to being a DJ.    … Expand
  29. triskelionitis
    May 14, 2017
    0
    One thing is being a DJ and other is being a singer. These guys can't do any of them.
    The music is repetitive and cheesy, there's nothing new to this duo.
    With the money they made from "Closer", they could maybe retire.
  30. NeutralMilkH
    May 13, 2017
    0
    I lasted one minute listening to this album... and I listened to the entirety of the Harry Styles album (which was surprisingly good... don't get me wrong.) When singers usually use electronics to alter their voice, it's because they want to experiment. Bands like Radiohead and Bon Iver have made such a point to create electronic albums... and it works. In this case, they only did itI lasted one minute listening to this album... and I listened to the entirety of the Harry Styles album (which was surprisingly good... don't get me wrong.) When singers usually use electronics to alter their voice, it's because they want to experiment. Bands like Radiohead and Bon Iver have made such a point to create electronic albums... and it works. In this case, they only did it because the lead singer can't sing (as seen on SNL.) Perhaps it's because he's a chainsmoker... which would make sense considering the fact that the name of this band literally promotes chainsmoking. The fact that this band has even managed to convince people to buy their albums just goes to show how this generation of people have been exploited to bad music like this instead of music that is actually thought-provoking and actually has...*cough*cough*... good lyrics, which this album could've used but then again, what's the point of learning how to sing English that makes coherent sense... oh yes... SO THAT THE SONGS DON'T SUCK! It's not even like it's supposed to be an album with mysterious lyrics, these are just dumb and vague lyrics that bore the absolute crap out of my pants.. seriously, after listening to this album for one minute, I had to take a poop because that's how horrible it was.

    Overall: 0/10

    Sigh... this album... just... who buys this and says, "I can't wait to see them live now!" or "I can't wait for their next album!"

    I DIDN'T EVEN MAKE IT PAST THE FIRST SONG.

    Caps... I know they're annoying... but that's how bad this album is.

    Also, I have Amazon Music Unlimited, so I "technically" didn't buy this album myself.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

12
#12 Most Discussed Album of 2017
93
#93 Most Shared Album of 2017

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
43

Mixed or average reviews - based on 8 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 8
  3. Negative: 1 out of 8
  1. AllMusic
    Apr 21, 2017
    40
    This certainly is not one of the worst albums ever recorded; indeed, it has its moments of merit that hit the proper spots and deliver the intended dose of dopamine. However, as a cohesive statement worthy of an album's length of the listener's attention, Memories is lacking.
    Read full review
  2. Rolling Stone
    Apr 13, 2017
    40
    Riddled with resentment and lyrics that land with a self-serious thud, Memories is a stunningly drab record. For the most part songs plod along at a strenuously mid-tempo pace, and are mostly lacking in any sonic detail that would reward closer listening.
    Read full review
  3. The New York Times
    Apr 12, 2017
    40
    Mr. Taggart is a capable but unexciting singer. And he has shockingly few lyrical ideas, less of a concern for performers more adept with melody. ... Two back-to-back songs, the impressive “Honest” and “Wake Up Alone,” parse the weight that fame exacts on emotional relationships--they’re among the most credible on the album.
    Read full review
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