It’s been a long time since I found an album that is such a polar opposite of itself. It wouldn’t even be fair to call this album “all over the place” so much that it bounces back and forth between some very good and some very bad songs, with a couple of middle of the road songs thrown in.
The album starts off with promise with the title track, “Black.” It’s a good song and reminds me a bit, thematically, of Bentley’s early hit, “Come a Little Closer.”
The album starts off with promise with the title track, “Black.” It’s a good song and reminds me a bit, thematically, of Bentley’s early hit, “Come a Little Closer.”
“Pick Up,” by its title alone, conjures that this song is about to be about a pickup trick. However, a pickup truck is only mentioned in passing in the chorus (and there’s no indication that it’s jacked up, either). The song begs a lover to pick up the pieces, to pick up where the couple left off, to pick up the phone and to show some kind of emotion, love or hate, and not leave the singer hanging on wondering what’s going on. I actually really liked this song.
“I’ll Be the Moon” is a duet with Maren Morris and is another strong offering.
It’s after this, however when the album begins to show signs of wavering.. First, I’ll admit that “What The Hell Did I Say” may be my guilty pleasure on the album. Admittedly, it’s not a good song and I wouldn’t want to see it as a single, but Bentley’s charismatic and enjoyable delivery prevent me from outright hating it (much like with “Drunk on a Plane”).
“Somewhere On a Beach” is awful. Many people hoped this song was just Bentley playing the game: releasing a radio friendly single to pave the way for an otherwise strong album. Unfortunately, the song is not an anomaly on the album: “Mardi Gras” is exactly what you’d expect from a song of that title, “Roses and a Time Machine takes a promising concept and some decent lyrics and wastes its potential: sonically it doesn’t work. It has aspects that could work: in fact, if done right, it should have worked as an up-tempo song, but added unnecessary pomp and circumstance turn it into a mediocre song, at best.
That doesn’t end the album’s different ends of the spectrum, though. Before you know it, Bentley is back with another strong offering, “Different For Girls.” The album also closes with another two strong songs: “Light It Up” and “Can’t Be Replaced.” “Can’t Be Replaced,” along with “I’ll Be the Moon,” is a favorite of mine on the album. It’s a very mature and relatable song. Anyone who’s ever experienced any significant changes in their life will be able to connect with this song: it took me back to college days at my fraternity house and the good times I shared with great friends: no matter how many times I go back and visit, those times cannot be recreated or replaced.
I wanted to like this album a lot more than I did. Bentley is capable of so much better than the album he offered. The album is far from terrible: it has some really strong moments. It just should have had a lot more strong moments and a lot less songs readily created for country radio. It’d be hard to accuse Bentley of completely selling out, but I did expect a lot more from him.
This review of Dierks Bentley's Black album was first published here.
“I’ll Be the Moon” is a duet with Maren Morris and is another strong offering.
It’s after this, however when the album begins to show signs of wavering.. First, I’ll admit that “What The Hell Did I Say” may be my guilty pleasure on the album. Admittedly, it’s not a good song and I wouldn’t want to see it as a single, but Bentley’s charismatic and enjoyable delivery prevent me from outright hating it (much like with “Drunk on a Plane”).
“Somewhere On a Beach” is awful. Many people hoped this song was just Bentley playing the game: releasing a radio friendly single to pave the way for an otherwise strong album. Unfortunately, the song is not an anomaly on the album: “Mardi Gras” is exactly what you’d expect from a song of that title, “Roses and a Time Machine takes a promising concept and some decent lyrics and wastes its potential: sonically it doesn’t work. It has aspects that could work: in fact, if done right, it should have worked as an up-tempo song, but added unnecessary pomp and circumstance turn it into a mediocre song, at best.
That doesn’t end the album’s different ends of the spectrum, though. Before you know it, Bentley is back with another strong offering, “Different For Girls.” The album also closes with another two strong songs: “Light It Up” and “Can’t Be Replaced.” “Can’t Be Replaced,” along with “I’ll Be the Moon,” is a favorite of mine on the album. It’s a very mature and relatable song. Anyone who’s ever experienced any significant changes in their life will be able to connect with this song: it took me back to college days at my fraternity house and the good times I shared with great friends: no matter how many times I go back and visit, those times cannot be recreated or replaced.
I wanted to like this album a lot more than I did. Bentley is capable of so much better than the album he offered. The album is far from terrible: it has some really strong moments. It just should have had a lot more strong moments and a lot less songs readily created for country radio. It’d be hard to accuse Bentley of completely selling out, but I did expect a lot more from him.
This review of Dierks Bentley's Black album was first published here.