Where We Are is the ninth studio album by Irish boy bandWestlife. It was released on 27 November 2009 in Ireland and on 30 November 2009 in the UK through S Records, RCA Records and Sony Music. Where We Are is the group's first album following a hiatus in 2008. This album was preceded by the lead single "What About Now" (a cover of the Daughtry song) and it was released on 23 October 2009 as a digital download a day later as a CD single.
The album was met with mixed reviews, although it was still commercially successful, debuting at number two at the UK Albums Chart and got 2× Platinum Certification in the United Kingdom which sold more than 600,000 records. Despite the high peak, it was the first Westlife album not to peak at number one since their 2004 album Allow Us to Be Frank peaked at number three. This is the 7th top-selling album of 2009 in Ireland.
Background
The recording process of the album started in LA on 1 July 2009. The first song they recorded was the ballad, "I’ll See You Again"". "I'll See You Again" was recorded by Ross at Metropolis Studios. For their first single "What About Now" Feehily told The Daily Mirror, "We wanted the first single from our new album to be somewhere between the Westlife sound our fans know and love, and the new direction we're heading in." The song "Shadows" was written by Ryan Tedder and AJ McLean for the Backstreet Boys' seventh album This Is Us but was not selected for inclusion. It was subsequently purchased by record label boss Simon Cowell for Leona Lewis's second album Echo but it was later decided that the song was more suited to a boyband and thus given Westlife to record.
The album also contains an "in memory of" section to Nikky Byrne and Kevin Egan, the fathers of Westlife members Nicky Byrne and Kian Egan.
Promotion
On 25 October 2009, during the X Factor results show, Westlife performed "What About Now". It was released online the same day. On 26 October they performed on GMTV and were interviewed in addition to hosting a webchat, with a further interview on The One Show on 30 October 2009. They will also perform at BBC Children in Need on 20 November and be interviewed on 26 November and 4 December on Alan Carr's Chatty Man and The Friday Show respectively. They are also doing radio promos in major cities of UK and Ireland from 24 October–November including an interview on BBC Radio One. TV dates were announced later. Following a Swedish promotional tour with performance on Swedish Idol. On 27 November 2009, Westlife performed on infamous UK television shows like Paul O' Grady Show and The Late Late Toy Show.
On 1 February 2010, their official website was revised. They called it as a first phase of 2010 assault. On 10 February 2010, they are invited to Jonathan Ross show for an interview to be televised on 12 February 2010. First week of February, they embarked on a promotional tour of Germany and guested on the Oliver Pocher Show on the third week of February.
"How to Break a Heart" was released as a promotional single on 10 March 2010 in some countries. They got the chance to perform with Boyzone for a track on the Stephen Gately Show in Ireland. They were invited to perform on Sun City Super Bowl Show on South Africa to be held on 19 March and Fashion Kicks 2010 on 13 April.
Where We Are received largely mixed-to-negative reviews, with many critics criticizing its repetitive sound and perceived lack of artistic progression from Westlife’s earlier releases. In one of the more positive assessments, Jason Birchmeier of AllMusic awarded the album three and a half stars out of five, acknowledging the group’s familiar musical formula while praising its collection of "many first-rate songs" and production that was "polished to perfection." In another favorable review, Mike Diver of BBC Music highlighted several "surprises" on the album, though he also remarked that the band's style had "barely changed." OK! magazine offered a notably enthusiastic response, describing the record as Westlife's "best yet" and praising its "slightly rockier" and "anthemic" sound, influenced by Take That, while noting that its "string-drenched ballads" retained the group’s signature style.
Several reviewers were far less impressed. Robert Spellman of The Daily Express gave the album two stars out of five, arguing that the songs were too similar and focused excessively on heartbreak. Writing for Entertainment.ie, Lauren Murphy offered a similarly critical view, describing the record as "maudlin and one-dimensional," though she praised Mark Feehily's vocals. Rick Pearson from The London Evening Standard labeled the songs "bland" and "uninspiring," concluding that Where We Are left Westlife sounding much the same as they had at the start of the decade. Other critics were even harsher. Ben Chalk of MSN stated that the album is "aimed squarely at the sort of person who buys one album a year, usually at Christmas, to listen to in the car." In his review for The Observer, Hugh Montgomery criticized the album's "usual [...] over-production, ersatz yearning and (anti-)climactic key changes." Alex Fletcher of Digital Spy panned Where We Are, saying that "there isn't a drop of passion, genuine emotion or soul to be found anywhere," while Ian Gittins of Virgin Media gave the album one star out of five, saying that the album's "only emotion [...] is a sinking sense of déjà vu."
Commercial performance
In Ireland, Where We Are peaked at number two on the Irish Albums Chart and was later certified triple platinum by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA), denoting shipments of over 45,000 copies. The album also ranked among the country's best-selling releases of 2009, finishing at number eight on the year-end chart. In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart and was certified double platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for shipments exceeding 600,000 copies. It was the 28th best-selling album of 2009 in the UK and continued to chart into 2010, appearing on the year-end chart again that year. Internationally, Where We Are achieved moderate chart success, reaching the top 10 in Greece, Sweden, and Taiwan, while also charting in countries including Austria, Germany, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, South Korea, and Switzerland. The album earned a gold certification in both New Zealand and Sweden.
12Released on Monday, 30 November 2009 (30 November 2009). "Digital Spy review". Digitalspy.co.uk. Retrieved 27 September 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
↑문*순 (5 March 2010). "[인터넷교보문고] Where We Are" (in Korean). Kyobobook.co.kr. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
