Avicii’s talent as an artist shines through in his ability to blend different musical genres into his own unique composition. As can be seen in the documentary True Stories, available on Netflix, Avicii was a combination of a workaholic and a perfectionist, only satisfied when the recordings matched the symphony going on inside his head. Avicii was very particular about what he wanted his songs to sound like, and when choosing vocalists, Avicii’s collaborators followed notes the artist left behind and sought vocalists who had worked with Avicii in the past rather than other high-profile celebrity artists who did not have the same experience with Tim.
Two of those collaborators are the Swedish songwriters and producers Vincent Pontare and Salem Al Fakir, who go by Vargas & Lagola and are featured on three songs of the album. To finalize their contributions, they focused on the months of conversations and correspondence they had with Avicii before his passing. They still had the final demos Avicii had sent them and worked to create an album as close as possible to the demos to avoid veering from Avicii’s intention. The opening track, “Peace of Mind,” smoothly introduces the longing for rest and recovery. It was likely inspired from Avicii’s multiyear chaotic touring schedule he retired from to focus on studio time producing new music. The opening track alternates between calm synthesized instrumental and quickly paced lyrics that imitate the rush of stardom. The dance beats Avicii became famous for build and build before rolling back to calmer reflections that let the listener appreciate the exciting sprint that came before. Avicii musical talent grew along with his audience’s age, creating an album with electronic-dance elements that can be appreciated outside of the confines of a dance tent.
| 1 | Peace Of Mind | 3:00 |
| 2 | Heaven | 4:37 |
| 3 | SOS | 2:37 |
| 4 | Tough Love | 3:11 |
| 5 | Bad Reputation | 3:25 |
| 6 | Ain't A Thing | 3:03 |
| 7 | Hold The Line | 2:51 |
| 8 | Freak | 2:59 |
| 9 | Excuse Me Mr Sir | 3:07 |
| 10 | Heart Upon My Sleeve | 4:14 |
| 11 | Never Leave Me | 2:51 |
| 12 | Fades Away | 2:58 |
