Stories
Studio album by
Avicii
Released2 October 2015 (2015-10-02)
Genre
Length54:40
Label
Producer
Avicii chronology
Pure Grinding / For a Better Day
(2015) 		Stories
(2015) 		Avīci (01)
(2017)
Singles from Stories
  1. "Waiting for Love"
    Released: May 22, 2015
  2. "For a Better Day"
    Released: August 28, 2015
  3. "Pure Grinding"
    Released: August 28, 2015
  4. "Broken Arrows"
    Released: September 29, 2015

Stories is the second studio album by Swedish electronic music producer Avicii, released on 2 October 2015 by PRMD Music and Island Records.[1] It was produced by Avicii along with Salem Al Fakir, Alex Ebert, Carl Falk, Kristoffer Fogelmark, Martin Garrix, Dhani Lennevald, Ash Pournouri, Albin Nedler, and Vincent Pontare on several tracks. It is his final album before his death in 2018. This album was followed by his 3rd and final album, Tim which was released posthumously in June of 2019.

Stories was released to mixed to positive reviews from critics. Four singles were released from the album: "Waiting for Love", "Pure Grinding", "For a Better Day", and "Broken Arrows", along with the promotional singles "Ten More Days" and "Gonna Love Ya". Stories has sold one million copies worldwide as of November 2015,[2] and was the fourth most-streamed album of the year worldwide on Spotify.[3]

Background

In July 2014, Avicii told Rolling Stone that he had worked on 70 songs for his next album and would include collaborations with Jon Bon Jovi, Billie Joe Armstrong, Chris Martin, Wyclef Jean, Serj Tankian and Matisyahu. Describing the album, Avicii said: "It's going to be a lot more song-oriented."[4] On 2 March 2015, Avicii performed live at Australia's Future Music Festival. A lot of songs were leaked onto the internet from Avicii's UMF 2015 set. These songs include "Waiting for Love", "For a Better Day", "City Lights" and "Sunset Jesus", leaked under the name "Attack".[5] A complete track listing of the set can be found on Avicii's SoundCloud page.[6]

On 22 May 2015, Avicii premiered his first single from Stories, "Waiting for Love". The track was co-produced by DJ and producer Martin Garrix. Almost a month later, Avicii communicated through Twitter that he had finished the album after two years of work.[7] On 4 August 2015, it was announced on iHeartMedia Summit that Avicii's next single from Stories was "For a Better Day", featuring singer Alex Ebert.[citation needed] On 28 August, he released his next two singles, the other being "Pure Grinding".[8]

Singles

"Waiting for Love" is a song featuring Simon Aldred of Cherry Ghost. Avicii released it on the 22 May 2015. "For a Better Day" is a song featuring Alex Ebert. Avicii released it on 28 August 2015. "Pure Grinding" is a song featuring Kristoffer Fogelmark and Earl St. Clair. Avicii released it on 28 August 2015. "Broken Arrows" is a song featuring Zac Brown of Zac Brown Band. Avicii first released it on 29 September 2015, three days ahead of the album release as a pre-order single. It became an official single during October 2015.

Promotional singles

"Ten More Days" is a song featuring Zak Abel. Avicii released it on 30 September 2015, two days ahead of album release as a pre-order single. "Gonna Love Ya” is a song featuring Sandro Cavazza. Avicii released it on 1 October 2015, one day ahead of the album release as a pre-order single.[9]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic64/100[10]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[11]
Billboard[12]
The Boston Globe(favourable)[13]
Rolling Stone[14]

The album received positive reviews. At Metacritic, the album received a score of 64, indicating favourable reviews. David Jeffries from AllMusic gave the album a positive review, stating that "the pleasing, alive, and diverse Stories is a fine reason to think of Avicii as a producer of attractive music, with EDM, pop, and all other genres on a sliding scale."[11] The Boston Globe's Maura Johnston says that "Stories drags a bit at the end, the low point being a reggae-lite track starring former Fugee Wyclef Jean and the fusion-minded Matisyahu, but when it hits, it hits big."[13] Michaelangelo Matos, from Billboard, gives the album a mixed-positive review, praising "Talk to Myself", "Touch Me" and "City Lights", saying they "are more or less direct Daft Punk homages, with a filtered, boogie-disco feel, playful effects and found-sound cut-ups".[12]

Track listing

Stories – CD – digital download – streaming[15][16]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Waiting for Love"
3:50
2."Talk to Myself"
  • Bergling
  • Carl Falk
  • Ash Pournouri
3:55
3."Touch Me"
  • Bergling
  • Adriano Buffone
  • Gerrard O'Connell
  • Celeste Waite
  • Ash Pournouri
Bergling3:06
4."Ten More Days"
  • Bergling
  • Simon Aldred
  • Zak Abel
Bergling4:05
5."For a Better Day"
  • Bergling
  • Ebert
3:26
6."Broken Arrows"
  • Bergling
  • Carl Falk
  • Ash Pournouri
3:52
7."True Believer"
Bergling4:48
8."City Lights"
  • Bergling
  • Noonie Bao
  • Oskar Jonas Wallin
  • Ash Pournouri
  • Bergling
  • Ash Pournouri
6:28
9."Pure Grinding"
  • Bergling
  • Kristoffer Fogelmark
  • Albin Nedler
2:51
10."Sunset Jesus"
  • Bergling
  • Dhani Lennevald
4:24
11."Can't Catch Me"
Bergling3:59
12."Somewhere in Stockholm"
Bergling3:22
13."Trouble"
  • Bergling
  • Falk
  • Wayne Hector
  • Yacoub
Bergling2:51
14."Gonna Love Ya"
  • Bergling
  • Sandro Cavazza
  • Dhani Lennevald
  • Ash Pournouri
  • Marcus Thunberg Wessel
  • Bergling
  • Ash Pournouri
  • Dhani Lennevald
3:35
Total length:54:40
Stories – UK version bonus track[17]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
15."The Nights"
  • Bergling
  • Nicholas Furlong
  • Gabriel Benjamin
  • Jordan Suecof
  • John Feldmann
  • Ash Pournouri
  • Bergling
  • Ash Pournouri
2:56
Total length:57:29
Stories – Japan and Russia version bonus tracks[18]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
15."The Days"
  • Bergling
  • Al Fakir
  • Pontare
4:38
16."The Nights"
  • Bergling
  • Furlong
  • Benjamin
  • Suecof
  • Feldmann
  • Ash Pournouri
  • Bergling
  • Ash Pournouri
2:56
17."Waiting for Love" (Sam Feldt Remix)
5:10
Total length:67:17
Stories – Japan tour edition bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
15."The Days"
  • Bergling
  • Al Fakir
  • Pontare
4:38
16."The Nights"
  • Bergling
  • Furlong
  • Benjamin
  • Suecof
  • Feldmann
  • Ash Pournouri
  • Bergling
  • Ash Pournouri
2:57
17."Levels" (radio edit)  3:22
18."I Could Be the One" (vs. Nicky Romero) (Nicktim Radio Edit)  3:28
19."Silhouettes" (radio edit)  3:32
20."X You" (radio edit)  3:20
21."Feeling Good"  3:50

Personnel

Vocals

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Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Austria (IFPI Austria)[56] Gold 7,500*
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[57] Platinum 20,000‡
Mexico (AMPROFON)[58] Gold 30,000^
Poland (ZPAV)[59] Platinum 20,000‡
Singapore (RIAS)[60] Gold 5,000*
Sweden (GLF)[61] 2× Platinum 80,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[62] Gold 100,000‡

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label
Worldwide 2 October 2015
PRMD/Island[1]

References

  1. ^ a b "Stories - Avicii | Release Info". AllMusic.
  2. ^ PRMD Music (2 November 2015) PRMD Music on Twitter. twitter.com
  3. ^ "Drake Is The World's Most Streamed Artist on Spotify for 2015". news.spotify.com. Archived from the original on 2015-12-01. Retrieved 2015-12-01.
  4. ^ Edwards, Gavin (31 July 2014). "Avicii Calls in Rock & Roll Collaborators for Follow-Up to 'True'". Rolling Stone. No. 1214. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  5. ^ Middleton, Ryan (19 April 2015) Avicii Releases Ultra Music Festival 2015 Live Set Filled With New 'Stories' Songs. musictimes.com
  6. ^ "Avicii - Ultra Music Festival 2015". SoundCloud.
  7. ^ "Tim Bergling on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
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  9. ^ "Team Avicii - Gonna Love Ya will get released tomorrow!". Facebook. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  10. ^ "Reviews for Stories by Avicii". Metacritic. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  11. ^ a b "AllMusic Review by David Jeffries". AllMusic. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
  12. ^ a b "Avicii Expands His Musical Reach on 'Stories': Album Review". Billboard. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
  13. ^ a b Johnston, Maura (1 October 2015). "Album review: Avicii, 'Stories'". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
  14. ^ "Superstar Swedish DJ turns kitchen-sink pop producer, with disappointing results". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
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  47. ^ "Official Irish Albums Chart: 27 April 2018". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
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  55. ^ "Årslista Album, 2021". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
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  57. ^ "Danish album certifications – Avicii – Stories". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
  58. ^ "Certificaciones" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Retrieved 15 November 2021. Type Avicii in the box under the ARTISTA column heading and Stories in the box under the TÍTULO column heading.
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