Album Review: Brian McKnight – Better
2 min read
He’s one of the most celebrated and respected artists in the business and the illustrious Brian McKnight is back at it again, with his latest RnB fuelled offering Better. And this time around he’s taken inspiration from his musical roots, infusing the effervescence of a full band, rather than computer made beats as a platform for his personal belters. Switching between crooning serenades and an effortless mid-tempo grooves, McKnight is delivering his version of love songs in a variety of dynamic ways.
Taking charge and pulling at the heartstrings, title track Better and Like I Do build slow, milking every beat, enhancing a sombre atmosphere to deeply serenade and draw you into his every word. Such tracks are the ones that resonate in particular, as each line is sung with such passion and emotion, they’re the forerunners, encapsulating the tender power of Brian McKnight.
While other tunes dial down the emotion a touch, and play with a catchy melody, like the fast paced ballads, Get You Into My Life and Enough. Or grooving on a different spectrum completely, the up-tempo track with slick riffs, I Can’t Take It, which takes deep, pulsing beats to turn out a track full of electro vibes. And of course, the unexpected Key 2 My Heart plays on with similar effect with its power pop, funky electronic rhythm and energizing rap verse. It’s stylistically different to the core content of Better, but it embodies such an effortless youthful vibrancy that it’s almost impossible not to bop and groove along.
With each track being smoother than the last, Brian McKnight proves that everything develops better with time. Better is a refreshing collection of soulful RnB grooves that are a welcome addition to his already impressive body of work.
