Tangled Up album cover

Album Review: Thomas Rhett–Tangled Up [a rant]

Rating: 0/10

**Language**

Now, I have reviewed bad albums. Luke Bryan’s Kill the Lights nearly made me wish that I had been born deaf rather than blind, saving me the horror of that experience altogether. But never before have I actually become angry when listening to an album for review–until now. Congratulations, Thomas Rhett. This, this is the most blatant, unashamed disregard for country music that I have ever witnessed, employing influences from nearly every genre except country and then labeling it “country” for some cash because in many cases, the “songs” concocted here would be laughed out of any other genre. I wrote that Don Henley made his album with obvious love and respect for the genre; one gets the feeling listening to this that Thomas Rhett went into this with outright hatred, disrespect, and defiance toward country music and its fans. Tangled Up is so named because of Thomas Rhett’s many influences, wich apparently include r&b, disco, funk, rap, rock, pop–anything but country–and his father was Rhett Akins, so he can’t even play the cluless Florida Georgia Line card here. He is so purposeful at avoiding anything having to do with country, and so arrogant and disrespectful about it, that all I can say is he should have went all the way and named this album Fuck Country Music, as this is the actual, unashamed theme…hey, at least he has a theme, I suppose. Maybe if he’d named it that, he could have thought of something for a cover, instead of leaving this to the fans in lieu of actually employing any creativity, self-expression, and/or brain power himself. If he’d gone with the above title, the cover could have shown him flipping off Hank or burning a Merle Haggard album…but I digress.

This thing begins with “Anthem,” a club song with electronic beats that is so blatantly non-country you get the feeling Thomas Rhett put this there on purpose out of pure, unbridled arrogance. The opening line is, “This is the beat that puts the fire on your feet, gives you the license to be a little crazy”–exactly, this is the beat that gives me the license to rip you and this album apart, Thomas Rhett. There is also a line that says, “This is the verse where you don’t know the words, and you don’t give a damn ’cause it feels good.” Goes nicely with my new theme, so points for that, I guess–too bad you didn’t name your album this, then I might have called it the perfect opener. “Crash and Burn” is next; now, I actually liked “Crash and Burn” when it first came out, but after it became apparent to me that Rhett ripped off Sam Cook’s “Chain Gang,” this song lost much of its appeal–and in the context of this album, it’s even worse, showing that one of the rare decent songs is still not country and was someone else’s idea in the first place. I wouldn’t blame you for liking “Crash and Burn” as a piece of music, but in the context of this album, it definitely sucks.

“South Side” is next, and if this gets released as a single, this will be one of the worst songs of the year. If there was a theme song for metro-bro, it would be this: the funk/r&b/rap song advising women to “shake your south side.” Um, no. “Die a Happy Man” is actually a good love song with some real emotion–just one huge, glaring problem: it’s an r&b song. There’s nothing remotely country about this. It’s also ironic that he name-drops Marvin Gay here–I was annoyed when they threw in names like Haggard and Strait, but this is almost worse. He will go on to name-drop Guns n’ Roses and Third Eye Blind in this album–bro country threw in all the country names to prove its country cred, metro-bro throws in as many non-country names as possible in its effort to mock country and traiditionalists. As if this album wasn’t non-country enough, next is “Vacation.” This horrifying display has fourteen songwriters, and I
already gave this brutal ruining of “low Rider” the ripping it deserves, and I don’t have much to add. Songs like “Vacation” are generally what Rhett would produce if he went to r&b, rather than decent ones like “Die a Happy Man,” so “country” is where he’ll stay, ruining my beloved genre with this musical disease that he has unleashed on mankind.

“Like It’s the Last Time” is typical bro country–“boots,” “jeans,” “truck,” “party lights,” you get the picture. Thomas Rhett, this is so 2013. But seriously, I can’t believe how welcome bro country is after what I’ve just been subjected to–it’s almost as if he put it there as some sort of sick, arrogant irony to show all us traditionalists bro country was not the worst thing that could befall us, and only the beginning of the war on our beloved country music. “T-Shirt” is possibly the most obnoxious song on this entire thing–it’s some sort of r&b/funk song about how the girl looks good in his T-shirt. Rhett does some really annoying Sam Hunt style spoken word here that only adds to the unoriginality, non-countriness, and general horror of this track. “Single Girl” sees Rhett asking a single girl if she wouldn’t rather be with him than be alone. This is not headache-inducing, but it’s boring, bland, and yes, non-country. Also, if he planned on singing any of this album to her regularly, I’m sure she’d rather die alone. “When You Stop Lookin’ Back” is about not looking back on the past, but rather moving on and looking forward. This does feature some acoustic guitar and perhaps could be called “r&b country,”–for about half the song–but half a song on an entire album is not enough to save this album or to call it country. “Tangled” is like a bad Maroon 5 song, complete with Thomas Rhett sounding like a terrible Adam Levine. I don’t even know what else to say.

I’m going to single out “Playing With Fire” here, as it’s the only song that I actually think is a good song in its rightful genre. It’s a pop song featuring Jordin Sparks about being in a relationship that isn’t right for them, but they can’t help “playing with fire.” For a pop song, it’s actually pretty good, and Jordin Sparks really helps this track. But just like “Die a Happy Man,” that doesn’t help a country album. There is not a shred of country in it, and at this point it would take Rhett singing Alan Jackson’s entire discography to make up for the monstrosity I have been forced through so far. “I Feel Good” brings us back to mindless party bullshit, and this song features LunchMoney Lewis, which actually makes this album worse–I didn’t think that was possible, so good job, Thomas Rhett. I should mention that this song name-drops “Georgia,” so I guess we’re supposed to automatically give this a “country” designation. The album concludes with “Learned it From the Radio,” an appropriate metro-bro anthem where Rhett explains that he learned all of his douche behavior, including how to drink and kiss girls, from the radio. I believe it, I really do.

Forget “Murder on Music Row,” where no one found the weapon. This album is Thomas Rhett holding up the weapon and dancing around in the street. If you like Thomas Rhett, so be it; your musical taste is your choice and none of my business. But when this r&b/funk/disco/pop music is so shamelessly allowed to be sent to “country” and to compete with George Strait, Don Henley, and Clint Black for album sales, it becomes my business, and I’m not going to sit by silently.

May King George personally come and kick Thomas Rhett’s ass if this collection of shit prevents George from having a #1 album this week!

Listen to Album

P.S. I love my readers and country music too much to post a video in any sort of support of this album.

P.P.S.

8 thoughts on “Album Review: Thomas Rhett–Tangled Up [a rant]”

  1. Great review Megan! Really, this isn’t just a bad country album, it’s a bad everything album. Easily my least favorite album this year behind Gloriana’s “Three”. I also kind of liked “Crash & Burn”. Sung by anyone else, and with a different production, it could have probably been a good song.

  2. …all I can say is he should have went all the way and named this album Fuck Country Music, as this is the actual, unashamed theme…hey, at least he has a theme, I suppose. Maybe if he’d named it that, he could have thought of something for a cover, instead of leaving this to the fans in lieu of actually employing any creativity, self-expression, and/or brain power himself. If he’d gone with the above title, the cover could have shown him flipping off Hank or burning a Merle Haggard album.

    This is magnificent. Just absolutely magnificent.

  3. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH
    WHY THE FFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK YOU GIVE TGHIS MASTERPIECE A BAD REVIEW

  4. This is clearly a rant written by a 12 year old. The use of the same terms and words over and over means they cannot create a constructive sentence or comment. They clearly don’t understand that genre is more than the instruments.

    Take Anthem for example. If you listen to it and strip away the background music you can hear the country style. The backing track is pop-influenced (defiantly not club, but this kid is not old enough to know what club music is) by is production and instrument choice but it is not a pop song. The way he sings, the guitar rifts, the beats are still very country.

    Genre is not defined simply by the extra instruments you add to song.

    And stop with this “insulting country fan” crap. As an open minded avid music listener I love country for it’s genre and appreciate every artist interprets it different. You are allowed to dislike his interpretation which I think it’s what you are trying to say on this insulting attempt to be a review.

    1. “Every artist interprets it different.” You are correct, see positive reviews for Jason Isbell, Turnpike Troubadours, Robyn Ludwick, Crystal Bowersox, Courtney Marie Andrews, Rod Melancon, Lauren Alaina, The Infamous Stringdusters, Jason Eady…all very different in style. “Genre is more than instruments.” Also correct, as evidenced by many of these same artists. “You are allowed to dislike his interpretation.” A contradiction to the rest of your comment, but also correct. You are allowed to like it as well, dissent and difference in taste is part of what makes this thing we call music such a beautiful thing.

  5. Megan,

    I am a 58 year old man, born and raised in Mississippi and I have listened to Country music since birth, literally. My Mom had my Dad bring a radio in the room and play the local country station to keep both of them calm during my 28 hour arrival. Hahaha, I heard that story nearly every morning growing up and sitting at the table for breakfast. My parents had the radio on the local country station from the time Mom got up at 4am EVERY MORNING, until they cut it off for us to say PRAYERS at bedtime (9pm sharp).

    I said all of that to say this…I am no “expert” in country music, or any genre. I didn’t major in music in college. What I have done is, I have let music, particularly Country music, be a major part in every aspect of my life. Why jus listening to a particular song can spark off a certain emotion, depending on when I listened to it. For example, I played football from third grade thru college and every time I hear Hank Jr., I am ready to run thru a brick wall!!! You guessed it!!! I listened to him before every ballgame!

    So this “educated listener” person may have majored in music. Okay, whatever degree/degree’s you have is/are great! Good for you!!! That doesn’t make YOU the “expert” anymore than my E.D.S. Degree make me an expert in ALL things education! (For any that do not know, E.D.S. stands for Educational Specialists Degree. It goes, Associates, Bachelors, Masters, E.D.S., PhD) Sure I am able to form some awesome opinions based on my education, but that doesn’t make me an expert. I have learned so much from teachers with only a Bachelors Degree. Why or How? Well, those teachers had been teaching for twenty, thirty, and even forty years. EXPERIENCE and first hand encounters have made them experts! So don’t get on your ivory soap box and attack Megan while trying to make yourself an expert! In my 32 years in education, a 12 year old attacks the other person when their argument has no merit!

    I personally have to agree with Megan’s opinion on this album. Now, I am about as country as you will find Sir/Ma’am! I have listened to the Country music genre for over 58 years and I have lived the life that a lot of true Country artists sing about! My Dad farmed soybeans or cotton on our 678 acre farm. My Dad had a pig pen that we raised pigs for food. We had 4 pastures that we raised cows in for food. He had 2 pastures that we raised horses in, not for food, but that was our 4-wheelers! Being an only child, I worked my butt off growing up with all that and Country music got me thru it! I still have the farm. I don’t work it much, I have hired workers that live on the property and work the fields and raised the livestock. I am now in a wheelchair because no one thought much about “getting your bell rung” when I played ball and about 12 years ago, I lost the use of both legs and one arm from the damage those concussions did to my brain. Let me tell you this, Country music gets me thru each day! I listen to my local station and the songs tha are played thru the day send me down memory lane and I go thru the range of emotions that music puts me thru! This ‘music’ and I use that term loosely, from this album gives me some emotion alright… it makes me nauseous and it makes me sad that someone that doesn’t know anything about Country music might actually think this is Country!

    Keep on Keepin’ on Megan! I just found your reviews and I like your thinkin’! I will be following your reviews closely from now on!

    GOD BLESS

    1. Abe,
      Thanks for your comment and welcome to CE! As for this person, all I can say is, I’ve been called worse. I myself have a BA in music business, and that helps me with some of the more technical opinions I have on music, but more than any of that, I have lived and breathed music my entire life, singing it or playing it or just listening to it and letting it affect me. I try to approach reviewing as both fan and critic, but fan first. I have hopefully grown a lot in my writing and analysis since this review almost 4 years ago, and I hope you’ll find some new cool artists here to love.

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