With Heaven On Top: A Review
Instead of going over all 25 songs, I decided to review the top five songs that came out of the album: “Plastic Cigarette”, “Say Why”, “Appetite”, “Bad News”, and “Runny Eggs.” I was not expecting to hear Zach Bryan talk in the first “song","Down, Down, Stream.” The album opened with a poem written by Bryan himself and the poem reflects life’s moments flowing over you. While confusing at first, the poem was a beautiful opening to the new album in my opinion. As the poem came to a close it segued into the actual opening song, “Runny Eggs.” According to data on a quick google search, these top 5 songs were the most streamed upon the release.
The spoken-poem introduction being the lead song was an interesting twist. A lot of artists have added this spoken-lyric style to their songs in the last few years, whether it's just a witty comment or something adjacent to a poem for a few lines. “Runny Eggs” is filled with Bryan’s own personal experiences, and, as I listened, I was able to catch on to some of the references, even as a less intense fan. Overall this song had a very Zach Bryan feel to it, accompanied with the acoustic guitar and harmonica. Overall, it makes plenty of sense why this song made the top five.
In fourth place was Bryan’s controversial track, “Bad News.” This song is very short but still manages to make a point about the current political conversation. With lyrics such as “I heard the cops came, cocky m—– f— ain’t they, And ICE is gonna come bust down your door,” followed later by “Got some bad news, fading of our red, white, and blue, This lands your land, this lands mine, too.” Towards the end of the song another lyric stood out to me, “Everyday on the news someone else is shot” – unfortunately, this lyric speaks the truth. This song was very controversial for Bryan, as a country artist, with a fanbase that mainly leans on the conservative side. Standing up and writing about politics was a move that I admired.
Third place comes “Appetite,” a personal favorite. This song surprises me because of the beat change compared to the more slow paced songs in the album. Possibly it was the trumpets, but the fast paced song was simply exciting to listen to. The song’s raw and honest exploration of Bryan’s personal struggles creates a safe environment for his fans who can relate. This song ranks as one of his more introspective songs, and in terms of production was more of a high-energy “banger”.
“Say Why” comes next, its popularity reached TikTok and a new trend emerged from it. On TikTok, the trend was for relationships. The song itself is a raw song exploring themes such as alcoholism and how it can damage a person. The production is more minimal compared to Appetite or other songs, as it focuses on Bryan’s raw vocals and acoustic elements creating an authenticity not seen often in mainstream music these days.
“Plastic Cigarette” takes the crown for the most streamed song to come from this album. It’s a reflective acoustic song about recognizing and navigating an unstable or failed relationship. In this song, Bryan simultaneously acknowledges his own personal mistakes in the song. It was very popular following its release day on TikTok and across various platforms. Many fans drew from the lyrics that it is about his summer fling with model Hannah Duncan. I personally enjoyed the metaphorical lyrics and acoustic style of the song.
My overall impression regarding the album was that it was one of Bryan’s more vulnerable works. It contained a wide variety of music, from a country vibe, to country/rock, to jazz to folk! Sprinkled throughout the album was the familiar themes of love, betrayal, and nostalgia that all Zach Bryan fans know and love. Despite the album being over an hour and twenty-five songs long (or, twenty-four songs and a poem), Bryan maintained his familiar style and kept fans captivated (whether by the lyrics, sounds, etc.) throughout its entirety. Overall I would recommend this album to anyone who has enjoyed his music in the past, but a new audience as well as he expands his genre.