Post Malone’s “beerbongs & bentleys”
Let’s surf some tracks and dig into the album.
Well, it’s finally here: Post Malone’s sophomore album, beerbongs & bentleys. First off, that’s a f*cking title. Super young with just one honest notch in his discography, it’s hard to believe Posty has reached this level of prestige; his latest album, B&B, went platinum in just a few days.
Oops!
“Who is this dude?”
Austin Richard Post is a [rock]star, who loves to sing, drink Bud Light, and boast happy-go-lucky vibes. He’s 22, my age, and I just learned that he shares America’s birthday on July 4th — no wonder guy loves to party! His style can (and should) be described as a concoction of back-country tunes, lurid hip-hop tempos, and spacey R&B melodies.
To say the least, Post Malone blurs the lines between genres — unique would be an understatement.
Now we have this, beerbongs & bentleys; an hour-long, 18 part lineup with multiple star-studded singles. There’s plenty of room for Post Malone to show off his multifarious flair.
Here’s how I heard his new sound, play by play.
1) Paranoid
As an introduction, “Paranoid” deserves an A+
B&B’s inception is gentle, yet just twisted enough to embody the entire record. He expresses stressful convictions — he’s literally paranoid and anxious from immense stardom and riches.
“Two hundred bands under the floor in the kitchen. A little more up in the walls, in the ceiling. Even family and friends started switching, ever since I got that check, see no mention.”
That’s the cynicism of it, so many people look at money and fame as a be all, end all. Like “that’s it, you won! Be free and happy forever!” The transparency of hip-hop is one of the main reasons I love it so much.
It’s one of the rare areas where it’s okay to sound straight up crazy and weird and sometimes insane.
In this case, Post is dealing with the misfortune of being overly fortunate.
“Paranoid” is a superb synopsis.
2) Spoil My Night (feat. Swae Lee)
Unfortunately, Swae Lee adds little to no value in the song for me. I think he says “I’ve never been like a small fry?” His verse is weak and corny. Aside from that, I really like the melody; it stands out and has a summer flavor to it.
Post is doing his thing. It’s apparent he’s utilizing more vocal power on B&B.
In “Spoil My Night,” the way he describes the party and the girl he meets is pretty entertaining. He’s got some golden lines buried in there (e.g. Postmate, Plan B). The spurt-like coda “I know. what. I’m. do-in. aint. right. but. aint. no. need. to. spoil. my. night. NO NEEED, NO NEEEEED!” is legendary.
3) Rich & Sad
Another example of “money can’t buy happiness” … or the person you truly want to be with.
I like that there’s some substance here. Although he’s rapping about mahogany cabinets and massive medallions (material possessions), he’s working from a foundation of “I am not content or defined by these things.”
Malone is alone and his soul is unsatisfied. It’s actually sad… someone love this man.
4) Zack and Codeine
A play on “The Suite Life of Zack & Cody.” It’s an uptempo track about partying and crashing hotel lobbies. Pretty cut and dry stuff. I do like these lines:
“Multimillionaire by the time I’m 23. Out here number one and I aint even hit my peak.”
It certainly feels like Post Malone’s music career is just getting started. It’s still very early on — can’t really argue with this brag, it’s facts!
By the way, who cares if he was just rapping about how riches don’t fulfill him on the previous song? Feelings shift. Let’s not pigeonhole the guy to one line of thought.
He’s having fun here.
5) Takin’ Shots
Party joint. You know what’s going on here. For me, the highlight is when he goes “Grrrrrrah!”
7, 9) Over Now / Better Now
Both of these songs incorporate hints of traditional instrumentation (i.e. mental guitar riffs, acoustic drum patterns, roots rock). It’s cool, it’s not something a lot of hip-hop artists can pull off in 2018. Post can and these tracks still manage to appeal to contemporary hip-hop / trap vibes.
I really like “Better Now.” It might be my favorite track on this album, actually. Again, very powerful keys from ole’ boy Malone — he’s seriously pushing his vocal boundaries.
12) Stay
Track 12 demonstrates why Posty is such a special artist. It’s a slow, soft implementation of singing and acoustic strums. I’d say the air is similar to “Go Flex” from Stoney, but more minimalist.
“Stay” is beautifully focused on lyrics, guitar layers, and articulate progression.
13) Blame It On Me
The longest song of the album at 4 minutes and 21 seconds. Song length is very consistent across beerbongs & bentleys; everything seems to sit right at about three and a half minutes.
This one sounds radio ready — it plays out like a ballad, but has a monster chorus and bumps.
It’s also very contradicting:
“It’s not my fault. It’s not my fault. Its not my fault. Blame it on me.”
Who knows?
16) 92 Explorer
The easiest way to explain this song? Fyyye — the beat hits you smack in the face! Post is going all in with the triplet flow, grungey high-notes, and insanely catchy hook.
Its got all the ingredients, thing bangs.
18) Sugar Wraith
The last track on the album. It couples perfectly with the previous single, “Candy Paint.” Both are loopy and have pop-ish energy. To be honest, I think the chorus sorta sounds like “Whatever You Like” by T.I.
I do fully appreciate the Anthony Fantano reference a.k.a. the world’s greatest sound reviewer and internet’s busiest music nerd!!!
“Sugar Wraith” is a nice little outro.
“I just wanna fly”
Overall, I can’t really say anything negative about this album. I could, but why? I really like it and enjoy listening to it.
Post Malone is evolving his style, versatility, and brand. It’s good stuff.
- AZ
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