Morgan Wallen is without a doubt one of the rising stars in Country music. His 2018 debut album ‘If I Know Me’ has been certified Platinum in the US and it housed three number one singles – ‘Up Down’ featuring Florida Georgia Line, ‘Whiskey Glasses’ and ‘Chasin’ You’. The run-up to the release of follow-up album ‘Dangerous: The Double Album’ has been anything but smooth. In terms of the music, Wallen is on fire with another two number ones under his belt – ‘More Than My Hometown’ and ‘7 Summers’ – but the chart-topper has come under fire for a few personal indiscretions including an arrest for public intoxication and disorderly conduct in May 2020 and his ‘Saturday Night Live’ was postponed after he violated the show’s COVID-19 protocols by partying in Alabama.
Wallen has since publicly apologised for his behaviour stating ‘I think I lost myself a little bit’. The personal vs professional conflict may not be quite resolved yet, and it’s clear that Wallen has some growing up to do, but on the evidence of ‘Dangerous: The Double Album’ he’s hitting his musical stride following his enjoyable but patchy debut album. As the title suggests, ‘Dangerous’ is a beast of a release boasting 30 tracks (yes, 30) spread across two discs. The initial announcement made me a little wary as these kinds of projects can go one of two ways; prove to be a stroke of real creative genius or be a really self-indulgent body of work that’s over-stuffed and under-delivers.
Thankfully for Wallen, ‘Dangerous’ is the former and across the lengthy release, he manages to appeal to every side of his fanbase. For the first time we’re getting to hear the versatility that Wallen has not only as a songwriter but as a vocalist, and there are plenty of surprises along the way. A handful of tracks here will already be familiar to fans such as ‘Heartless’, Wallen’s Diplo collaboration, his two number one singles ‘More Than My Hometown’ and ‘7 Summers’, his surprisingly good Jason Isbell cover ‘Cover Me Up’ and buzz track ‘This Bar’.
‘Dangerous’ opens up, unexpectedly, with ballad ‘Sand in My Boots’, one of the songs that Wallen has recorded from outside writers (across the album’s 30 tracks, Wallen had a hand in 16 of them). His gritty vocals drive the melody as he sings about a fling that never amounted to anything. The outside cuts that Wallen has recorded for the record feature some seriously huge talent including Rhett Akins, Thomas Rhett, Devin Dawson, Hardy, Ernest, Niko Moon and ‘The Chief’ himself Eric Church.
Interestingly the Church track, ‘Quittin’ Time’ closes out the album, which may be a smart move so people don’t get distracted by it earlier on. You can tell it’s a Church song but the acoustic-production actually really suits Wallen. Other highlights from the outside cuts include the Thomas Rhett co-penned ‘Whiskey’d My Way’, the summery ‘Blame It On Me’ and the more traditional Country of ‘Outlaw’ featuring Ben Burgess. One song destined to grab attention is ‘Whatcha Think Of Country Now’, co-penned by Devin Dawson, which sees Wallen schooling a woman on what being country is really like. It name drops Willie Nelson, has an infectious beat and I can imagine it going down well in a live show.
Given that there are 30 tracks on the record, it really does give Wallen a chance to experiment and spread his wings a little. The beat-laden ‘Wasted On You’ is an example of Wallen embracing current modern Country sounds (not too dissimilar to the earworm ‘Heartless’) while ‘Somebody’s Problem’ shows that he’s just as comfortable with a more stripped-down arrangement. Depending on how you like your Morgan Wallen, you could actually split ‘Dangerous’ down the middle. If it’s the more acoustic stuff you want head straight to ‘865’ or ‘More Surprised Than Me’. If a party is what you’re after with modern beats, then look up ‘Your Bartender’, the title track ‘Dangerous’ or (the sure to be divisive) ‘Country A$$ Shit’.
Perhaps the track that really caught me off guard is ‘Only Thing That’s Gone’ featuring Chris Stapleton. I wouldn’t have put Wallen and Stapleton together, and finding out they’d recorded a track left me a little dubious. In reality it works really well. Stapleton seems to have the unique ability of being able to harmonise with anyone and the difference in their voices ends up being their strength when they come together.
‘Dangerous: The Double Album’ is going to make people feel a lot of different things. Some people will be quick to say it’s too long and has too much filler. Fans of Wallen’s more modern Country material may only like half of the record and those that want him to mature a little and go a bit deeper will gravitate to the other half of the record. For me, I think ‘Dangerous’ is a smart move as Wallen plays to everyone and that’s likely going to result in strong sales and a record with serious longevity – provided he can actually get on the road and tour at some point in 2021. ‘Dangerous: The Double Album’ is a fascinating insight into one of modern Country’s most conflicted, and potentially most divisive, emerging stars and I think it’s the strongest sign yet that Wallen could well be the future of the genre.
Track list: 1. Sand in My Boots 2. Wasted On You 3. Somebody’s Problem 4. More Surprised Than Me 5. 865 6. Warning 7. Neon Eyes 8. Outlaw (feat. Ben Burgess) 9. Whiskey’d My Way 10. Wonderin’ Bout The Wind 11. Your Bartender 12. Only Thing That’s Gone (feat. Chris Stapleton) 13. Cover Me Up 14. 7 Summers 15. More Than My Hometown 16. Still Goin’ Down 17. Rednecks, Red Letters, Red Dirt 18. Dangerous 19. Beer Don’t 20. Blame It On Me 21. Somethin’ Country 22. This Bar 23. Country A$$ Shit 24. Whatcha Think Of Country Now 25. Me On Whiskey 26. Need a Boat 27. Silverado For Sale 28. Heartless 29. Livin’ The Dream 30. Quittin’ Time Record label: Big Loud Release date: 8th January 2021 Buy ‘Dangerous: The Double Album’ now
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