LUKE COMBS
The Way I Am (Sony Music Nashville)
Luke Combs triumphantly returns to the country music scene with The Way I Am, an album that’s exactly the sort of high-spirited, boot-stomping soundtrack fans have long awaited. It opens with Back In The Saddle, itself a celebration of Combs’ first album in three years: as the lyrics admit, “I’ve been gone for a little too long”.
The album masters the perfect blend of blues-tinged soulfulness – the sort of thing that might even have you shedding a tear – and country-pop to get everyone dancing. I foresee Can’t Tell Me I’m Wrong, with its striking similarity to Tracy Chapman’s previously-Combs-covered Fast Car, being a fan favourite.
With an impressive 22-strong tracklist, there’s something for everyone to relate to on The Way I Am – longing for a past love, personal growth and rediscovering what is important to you. Luke Combs has felt it all, and graced us with an album to prove it.
words AMY FORD
