Luke Combs begins The Way I Am, his sixth studio album, growling about how he’s been “gone for a little too long,” how he’s been “waitin’ on a drummer to kick off a comeback song.” The framing means that the nation singer has been out of fee for a short time, however that notion isn’t fairly proper.
It’s true that Combs’ final album—Fathers & Sons, launched on Father’s Day weekend 2024—was his first that didn’t generate successful and, in flip, that didn’t get licensed platinum. That could possibly be referred to as a hunch if Fathers & Sons wasn’t intentionally positioned as one thing of a aspect journey for Combs, a manner for him to replicate on his function as a brand new father. It was a stunning, understated file made with out nation radio in thoughts—which isn’t one thing that could possibly be mentioned about The Way I Am.
No rating but, be the primary so as to add.
Big and vivid, balanced between ballads and sports-bar anthems, The Way I Am performs like an hour of prime up to date nation radio: It hits the anticipated marks crisply and effectively, generally even memorably. Combs doesn’t even trouble to feign a shock. There are songs about whiskey, Saturday evening, and Daytona; tunes about cowboys, loneliness, and eternal love. These are hand-me-down tales, delivered in a well-known trend, distinguished by an knowledgeable sense of craft.
Combs is as soon as once more working with Chip Matthews and Jonathan Singleton, the crew of co-producers and occasional co-writers that fell into place on the singer’s second file, What You See Is What You Get. The trio favor a clear, uncluttered sound that’s paying homage to ’90s nation with out being designed as a throwback. Combs has a honeyed rasp that instructions consideration, notably since he chooses to maintain his energy in reserve. He’s a storyteller who is aware of when to not telegraph a twist. When “15 Minutes” reveals that the titular phrase refers back to the period of time a prisoner receives for a name whereas serving a life sentence, Combs delivers the denouement with out irony or melodrama. It’s an old school weeper delivered with respect for the style.
“15 Minutes” may’ve been on any hardcore nation file launched within the second half of the twentieth century, a sign of how Combs is aware of the music’s lineage. There are indicators of custom lurking elsewhere on the file. Alison Krauss harmonizes on “Ever Mine,” a bittersweet neo-bluegrass tune co-written by Combs, Hailey Whitters, and Charlie Wosham. It has a cousin in “Days Like These,” a burnished, weathered ballad, co-written with Brent Cobb and Aaron Raitiere. These gradual, quiet numbers intensify Combs’ savvy country-pop, proving he isn’t merely a revivalist pining for yesteryear.
The Way I Am is decidedly trendy in its have an effect on, dressing its sturdy songs in subtly trendy up to date fashions. “Be By You” simmers to a slinky R&B rhythm, “Can’t Tell Me I’m Wrong” rides a cool ’80s country-pop breeze, whereas “Rethink Some Things” is its nocturnal flip aspect. Some of the experiments are consciously underplayed. “Tell ’Em About Tonight” buries a Byrdsian chime beneath its rockin’ nation veneer, whereas “Sleepless in a Hotel Room” glimmers with digital accents that lightly steer the slow-burner in the direction of the verge of pop.
