Silk Sonic Prove The Best Way To Spend An Evening Is Listening To Their Debut Album
Samantha Colleran, November 2021
Silk Sonic has taken the world completely by storm. From the moment their first single “Leave The Door Open” dropped, it’s been impossible to escape their infectious melodies, effortlessly smooth vocals, and overall sexy vibe. The duo, consisting of Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars, stated in a recent Rolling Stone interview that due to their perfectionism the album wouldn’t be ready until January 2022, so it came as a complete shock when the release date suddenly jumped to November 12. I’m certainly not complaining; absolutely everything about the leading singles has been incredible, it feels like Christmas came early with this release. Let’s get into it, get ready to spend An Evening With Silk Sonic!
This album is the perfect callback to a retro R&B vibe. We open on our “Silk Sonic Intro”, where the duo is introduced by Bootsy Collins, our special guest host of the album who makes a number of appearances throughout the tracks. We get an immediate funky groove going as the duo enter in on the track, “Who y’all came to see tonight?/ Who gon’ get the ladies to feel something?” This smooth intro of course leads us into the first single off of this album, “Leave The Door Open”, a smooth song where Bruno and Anderson put on all the charm, letting their girls know they’re leaving the door open for her to come in at any time. It sounds just as classic now as it did when it was first released in March, and it’s still just as catchy as it was when it first dropped.
“Fly As Me” is a new track, where .Paak and Mars sing about how lucky any lady would be to be seen with “somebody as fly as” them. It’s filled with confidence, swagger, the instrumentals are bouncy and fun. This is definitely a standout track on the album, and absolutely one of my favorites! “After Last Night” features our guest host Bootsy Collins once again, and a new addition of Thundercat. This is a more PG-13 “Leave The Door Open”, where Bruno and Anderson sing about having such a special night with a lady they’re ready to “call every girl [I] know/ And tell them goodbye” because this girl “changed the game” for future lovers.
“Smokin’ Out The Window”, the last and perhaps the best single off the album, is about a gold digging woman who uses men for their money. Laced with a bit of humor (“Got her badass kids runnin’ round my who crib/ Like it’s Chuck E. Cheese”, and a Nutty Professor reference) and impeccable vocals on the duo’s part, this song is possibly the greatest collaboration between the duo. It has the Bootsy feature, a solid production, and lyrics that border on sadness and hilarity, “Smokin’ Out The Window” really shows just how well Bruno and Anderson work as a pair. “Put On A Smile” is the power ballad of the album, and it shows a different side of the two. Instead of putting on the player facade, we take a step back from that and see a softer side where they admit they need their love. It adds some interest to the album, and it gives Bruno, the king of ballads the spotlight for a moment.
“777” is similar to “Fly As Me” in terms of confidence and swagger, but this time we’re getting lucky while gambling in Vegas. It’s groovy and emulates the perfect 70s vibe, definitely another standout track in terms of sound. “Skate” was the second single off the album, it feels like summer in a song. The duo sing about a woman who is so perfect, she’d be locked up in a tower if being beautiful was a crime. You’ll find it hard to keep yourself from dancing and grooving around as you listen to this lovely little tune. Unfortunately, we reach the end of the album with “Blast Off”. Although it’s sad to see this album end, this track is the perfect way to go out. It takes on a more psychedelic feel, .Paak tells us he “took a little something to get here”, he’s got a little more, and off we go on this final musical journey. The two are “watching the world go crazy from outer space” as our guest host of our evening bids us a farewell “All the way from the stratosphere”.
Sam’s Song Selection
Keep in mind this will probably change five minutes after publishing this post.
1. “Smokin’ Out The Window”: This is for the sole reason that I’ve had this on repeat since it dropped. It’s the perfect single and a total earworm.
2. “Blast Off”: I’m a sucker for album closers, and this one is absolutely perfect. It wraps up the album on a high note, and it shows how versatile the R&B/soft rock genres can be. The guitar solo is also pretty epic.
3. “Fly As Me”: I love the confidence this track exudes. The bassline is also super catchy, and I love the overall bouncy feel the track has!
All in all, if you need a positive, fun listen to add to your rotation, An Evening With Silk Sonic is your album. This is definitely one of the best albums of the year, and it’s so clear just how much love and perfectionism was poured into these nine tracks. If you’ve listened to the full album, let me know your thoughts in the comments! If you haven’t, I suggest heading over to Apple Music, Spotify, or any other streaming service, and make some time to listen to Silk Sonic!