Post Malone's second album sparkles at times, but is ultimately packed with a lot of tedious filler
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Post Malone has released his much anticipated new album beerbongs & bentleys. The hobo chic superstar’s second studio album shows flashes of brilliance in what is an otherwise reservoir of homogenised reiterations.
The hype around beerbongs & bentleys has been palpable over the last couple months and Post Malone has given his fans what they’ve waited for when it comes to merging new material with his world renowned singles that have shrouded the charts over the past year, but the phrase ‘one trick pony’ is starting to creep into the frame. His quintessential R&B inspired melodic trap sound is unchanged and proudly on display in the new release, and for the most part is successfully and aptly utilised. Perhaps surprisingly, given its seemingly ubiquitous presence, massive international chart topper ‘rockstar’ takes pride of place in the album, the artist’s biggest single providing a more than sufficient core to tie it all together as it nears its billionth stream on Spotify. The Ty Dolla $ign featuring ‘Psycho’ and last year’s ‘Candy Paint’ also provide more monumental familiarity to get the album straight off the ground.
However, aside from the hits we are already aware of, beerbongs & bentleys leaves a little more to be desired. The 22 year old follows this ever growing frustrating trend of packing as many songs into an album as he can. Treading in the footsteps of the likes of Migos, Chris Brown, and Drake, Post Malone has dragged the latest release over eighteen songs, resulting in something spread incredibly thin. Even though beerbongs & bentleys only just passes the hour mark, it still feels a good three or four songs too much. For example, the calm trap beats and smooth yet unadventurous vocals in ‘Over Now’ and ‘Better Now’ just seem far too similar for them both to warrant a place on final recording.
That being said, love or hate the style, Post Malone has treated us to another couple of bangers that are sure to become the sound of the summer. ‘Zack and Codeine’ is the track that seems to have most fans excited, irrefutably harking back to a generation’s nostalgia in direct reference to The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. Opening with the line “Man, my life so sweet, I feel like Cody”, Post Malone has already put a sentimental smirk on the faces of his target audience. The disappointment with lack of a shout out to Mr Moseby is all but made up for as he croons “We turned the hotel lobby to a party”. As well as this, some exciting features (most notably Nicki Minaj, G-Eazy, and 21 Savage) end up salvaging what could have been a huge disappointment into something altogether pretty decent, if not remarkable.
The album is available now via Republic Records.
