Bruno Mars- The Romantic
Label: Atlantic
Producers: Bruno Mars, D’Mile
The Romantic marks Bruno Mars’ first solo album in nearly a decade, though he’s hardly been absent on the music scene during the intervening years since 2016’s 24K Magic, scoring smash collaborations with the likes of Lady Gaga, Rose, and Anderson .Paak on their 2021 collaborative project, An Evening with Silk Sonic. Nevertheless, the anticipation is high for this long overdue proper project, with his high-profile reputation as one of the 2010s’ most reliable singers and flat-out entertainers having carried well over into the 2020s. This record finds Mars in his usual fine vocal form, while the signature charisma and cheesy but pleasing novelties of his previous three studio sets remain on prominent showcase throughout, particularly on the album’s global smash of a lead single, “I Just Might”.
While Mars may rely on those previously reliable, if not admittedly trite, tropes plenty as The Romantic unfolds, the opening pair of tracks (“Risk It All” and “Cha Cha Cha”) find him diving deeper into relatively uncharted stylistic territory with a heavy nod to lush Latin soul. It comes as no surprise just how smoothly and naturally Mars’ suave vocals glide against the sultry mariachi arrangements, and while this is not a completely brand new realm for him to explore, its feels like a fresh and vibrantly rewarding pivot for him to launch this newest era. Meanwhile, it’s noteworthy that D’Mile serves as producer of the album as a follow-up to his work on the Silk Sonic endeavor. This leads Mars back down the American soul rabbit-hole that has served him so well in the past, with performances like the flirty “God Was Showing Off”, the disco-fried “On My Soul”, and the gorgeously rock-tinged “Why You Wanna Fight?” serving as the premiere highlights.
Throughout this cultural melting-pop of rich and diverse soul sounds, Mars reverently channels influences as varied as The Jackson 5/Michael Jackson, Marvin Gaye, James Brown, Curtis Mayfield, even freaking Juvenile, and on the splashy centerpiece “Something Serious”, both Santana’s “Oye Como Va” and War’s “Low Rider”. While the argument can be made that Mars’ affection and impressive knack for retro sounds often comes without any significantly new ground being explored, it’s difficult to complain when he sounds so fabulous, particularly on vocal showcases like “Nothing Left” and “Dance With Me”. His vocal power remains just so damn romancing, and easily one of the most purely passionate amongst any and all active singers on the planet.
At a brisk run-time of thirty minutes and a mere nine tracks, The Romantic may feel a bit slight given that it’s been a decade since his last full-length solo album. With that said, in the era of excess and bloated triple-or more-albums, there’s also something refreshing about Mars’ brevity, which is also nothing new in his catalog. His charming style strikes in fast, immediate fashion and in doing so, it makes this album all the more accessible, durable, and easy to become well-acquainted with. It’s not overly complicated: just romantic, danceable, pure pop-fun from one of the modern masters of such fare. A perfectly suited addition to your late-night and weekend soundtrack.
Track Listing:
- “Risk It All” (Bruno Mars, D’Mile, Philip Lawrence, James Fauntleroy, Johan Arjona)
- “Cha Cha Cha” (Mars, D’Mile, Lawrence, Fauntleroy, Arjona, Brody Brown, Juvenile)
- “I Just Might” (Mars, D’Mile, Lawrence, Brown)
- “God Was Showing Off” (Mars, D’Mile, Lawrence, Fauntleroy, Homer Steinweiss, Leon Michels, Dave Guy)
- “Why You Wanna Fight?” (Mars, D’Mile, Brown, Arjona)
- “On My Soul” (Mars, D’Mile, Lawrence, Fauntleroy)
- “Something Serious” (Mars, D’Mile, Arjona)
- “Nothing Left” (Mars, D’Mile, Arjona)
- “Dance With Me” (Mars, D’Mile, Fauntleroy)
The 706 
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