Country singer Zach Bryan released the album “With Heaven On Top” on Jan. 9. This album marked the biggest opening week of his career with around 26.1 million monthly listeners. The songs “Say Why,” “Plastic Cigarette” and “Appetite” are fan-favorites on the album.
Bryan created this album to talk about the past 16 months of his life experiences. The album contains 25 songs, comprising a total of 78 minutes. Through all of these songs, Bryan emotionally details personal experiences during a bad period of his life. Most of them speak of heartbreak and of Bryan’s attempts at finding himself again.
“Say Why” is a very popular song because of its intense emotional depth. The song explores themes of alcohol, dependency, heartbreak and personal demons. People have been making TikToks using a viral lyric: “Still drove 40 hours and I’ll drive 40 more / 40 days in the desert just to wind up at your door.” These videos are about how the person in the TikTok would do anything to see their loved ones, even when they live far away. The song is simultaneously catchy and emotional.
“Say Why” is similar to “Plastic Cigarette,” a bittersweet song about a broken summer romance. The lyrics explore the journey of finding oneself again after a breakup. In the song, Bryan explains how he is finding himself again by healing slowly.
“Appetite,” another standout song, is about the pitfalls of fame, personal life and the struggle to mature while battling addictions. This song explains a part of Bryan’s life when he was not at his best. The song has the capacity to be deeply sad and emotionally ripe for listeners, especially those who have been in a similar place as Bryan.
“Cannonball” dives into themes of loss, nostalgia, youth and the harsh realities of life. It also includes personal storytelling, with the song holding a deeper meaning about Bryan’s mother. The song is catchy and one of the best on the album. This song is catchy and a personal favorite, although many dislike it, finding it to lack momentum and relatability.
“Drowning” is an emotional song exploring the intense and dangerous consumption of love. This song is slightly sloppy, uninteresting and generally lacking in proper arrangement, making it oned of the album’s worst tracks. However, some do enjoy it because they relate to intense love described throughout.
“Rivers and Creeks” is a folk country song about heartbreak, betrayal and the painful nature of love. Although the song does not have the best vocals, those who have been through a harsh breakup may still find solace in it. But to say criticisms of it have been harsh is an understatement; people have been claiming it sounds like a “bad attempt at a yodel.”
The title track, “With Heaven On Top,” is about exploring profound nostalgia and the burden of fame, among other things. It is also about finding comfort, protection and self-acceptance even while harboring guilt. This song is relieving compared to the others on the album because it focuses on Bryan finally finding himself, whereas most of the others talk about losing hope.
To Bryan, “With Heaven On Top” represents finding hope, peace and resilience. This song was enjoyable because it felt like a breath of fresh air in Bryan’s continued exploration of heartbreak, loss and sobriety.
Overall, this album was a hit because of its relatable, catchy and emotional content. Bryan wrote this album to put words to a long and hard period in his life. However, he still managed to express the sentiment that hope and peace will come, even during dark times, giving the album refreshing sincerity.
