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Media Review

Brantley Gilbert – Fire & Brimstone

Florian Buechtingby Florian Buechting

Brantley Gilbert - Fire & Brimstone

Brantley Gilbert - Fire & Brimstone
4.5

Rating

 4.5/5

Flyctory.com Pros

  • Huge variety of songs
  • Great songs and productions
  • Very catching album

Will Brantley Gilbert do the Billboard-Hattrick after his last two albums topped the US Billboard Charts? I was really looking forward to Fire & Brimstone, Gilbert’s fifth studio album, which has been released on 4th October 2019.

Brantley Gilbert – About the Artist

Brantley Kieth Gilbert, born in 1985 in Jefferson, Georgia is a country music singer and songwriter. He is an active musician since 2005. After regional gigs, he released his debut album Modern Day Prodigal Son in 2009, which made it to the top 60 of the charts. The 2010 Halfway to Heaven already made it very good, but the 2014 Just As I Am was the first one to top the country charts. The album was also very popular among the non-country listeners. The last album Gilbert released in January 2017, The Devil Don’t sleep, had equivalent chart entries. Three of his songs made it to the top of the US Country Song and US Country airplay charts in parallel: the 2011 ones Country Must Be Country Wide and You Don’t Know Her Like I Do and the 2014 One Hell of an Amen. He is married to Georgia schoolteacher Amber Cochran, after he split up with Jana Kramer (see the report from her fan party in Nashville 2019).

 

Brantley Gilbert – Fire & Brimstone – Track by Track

Fire & Brimstone is a fifteen track album. The total duration is 51 minutes.

1. Fire’t Up

The first track on the album feels like a “reduced” version of Gilbert to me. Fire’t Up is somehow rocking, somehow catching and somehow a nice song. It just does not touch too much.

2. Not Like Us

Not Like Us has definitely more guitars, more rock and thus more catching elements than Fire’t Up.  Really like the song!

3. Welcome to Hazeville (feat. Colt Ford & Lukas Nelson & Willie Nelson)

What a lineup for this song, having Gilbert with Colt Ford and both Nelson generations in one song. Welcome to Hazeville does not have span in its melody, so that it feels a bit like a “Country Rap” at the beginning, before there are in fact rap elements later. Well produced, interesting, something different – it is hard for me to get a grip on that song even after listening to it multiple times – but I definitely cannot say it is a bad one.

4. What Happens in a Small Town (feat. Lindsay Ell)

The first song released from this album – and already somehow a classic. I was surprised to see that What Happens in a Small Town just barely made it to the Top 10 airplays. A lovely duet, nice song.

5. She Ain’t Home

She Ain’t Home is a quite melodic track again. Like to listen to this one!

6. Lost Soul’s Prayer

Before I lay my head down I pray the Lord my soul to keep
I got the Devil on me so Lord I’m prayin’ now you forgive me for my sins
Knowin’ good and well I’ll probably do it again
And  be with the people lookin’ down on me
But Lord don’t ever let ’em put their hands on me
I turn them lights out, don’t know if you can hear me up there
It’s just another lost soul’s prayer

Spritual lyrics combined with with country rock – really cool track

7. Tough Town

Another country rock track. Very catchy, good to listen to and full of power.

8. Fire & Brimstone (feat. Jamey Johnson & Alison Krauss)

The title track of the album, Fire & Brimstone, is a lovely ballad. I feel that Gilbert sounds great in this one – lovely song!

9. Laid Back Ride

On the ninth track, Gilbert is taking us on a Laid Back Ride. A very melodic track.

10. Bad Boy

Bad Boy was one of the tracks which has been released before the album. While there is a lot of rocking music on the album, Gilbert proofs that he can do it on the softer side as well. Great song reminding that you also should travel the tougher roads together.

11. New Money

The guitars are going heavier again on this one. Gilbert just makes me listen – and enjoy – his stories, again and again.

12. Breaks Down

I honestly did not find the right words to describe Breaks Down, apart from that I felt that it is one of the best tracks of the album – so I simply share it with you:

13. Man of Steel

I would describe the Man of Steel is a country rock ballad: very soft and ballad-alike verses with more guitar play in the chorus. Nice song.

14. Never Gonna Be Alone

Never Gonna Be Alone is a great love song, stating that his wife is never alone, even if he is far away, for the rest of his life. Nice songwriting and storytelling and good production.

15. Man That Hung The Moon

You’re gonna think I hung the moon
You’re gonna think I made the sky
That the sun rises
And sets inside of my eyes
And it won’t be long
‘Til I hear “Daddy’s home” and
Footsteps running to
The man that hung the moon

The last song is some sort of love letter to his son and his daughter, who will be born soon. Lovely finish of the album.

 

Brantley Gilbert – Fire & Brimstone – Spotify

The Spotify widget allows you to listen to the full album:

 

Brantley Gilbert – Fire & Brimstone – My View

I started the review with the question, whether Gilbert will do the Billboard-hattrick with that album. I feel, he would definitely deserve it! It is great to listen to music, nice songwriting and lyrics and has also some very surprising elements, which adds a lot of variety. Finally, it has all the ingredients for a great album – and this meal is also perfectly cooked. No question mark here, this is a Top Pick!

 

Flyctory.com Country Music Reviews

Here are reviews of all country music albums and EPs I reviewed earlier on the website:

 

Other Top Picks

Here are all other reviews which I rated as excellent and assigned the Top Pick! Award:

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