Key Highlights
- The Romantic by Bruno Mars is a homage to Chicano soul.
- Dernst Emile II (D’Mile) reshapes Mars’s sound with pre-disco sweetness and old-school arrangements.
- “Why You Wanna Fight?” showcases Mars’s emotional maturity in songwriting.
- The album’s production, led by Philip Lawrence and Brody Brown, complements D’Mile’s vision.
Album Overview: A Soulful Return
You might think this is new, but… Bruno Mars hasn’t exactly been quiet. His last solo effort, 24K Magic, was a decade ago. The Romantic, his fourth solo album, comes with the weight of years and experiences.
A Chicano Soul Revival
Mars isn’t Mexican, but his Puerto Rican roots and time in Los Angeles put him close enough to this tradition that borrowing its visual grammar doesn’t feel like tourism. D’Mile’s fingerprints are warm, pulling away from neon toward amber with a focus on brass and strings that draw from pre-disco sweetness.
The Opening Act: Pursuit and Promise
The album opens with three songs about wanting someone but not quite having them. “Risk It All” is Mars at his most sweeping, promising anything for her, while “Cha Cha Cha” drops him into a more ridiculous, dancefloor setting. The lead single, “I Just Might,” is disco-pop, bright and conditional.
Commitment and Commitment’s Aftermath
The album’s second half turns from pursuit to something stranger as Mars tells a woman she’s so beautiful that God flexed while making her, calling her an “earth angel.” “Why You Wanna Fight?” is the first track where he admits being wrong, promising to call her momma and plead with all her friends. This shift in tone adds depth.
Domesticity and Heartbreak
“Nothing Left” cracks open Mars’s performance, showing him alone in a home they built, the fire not burning like it used to. He can’t find magic in her eyes anymore. These last two songs are a man realizing his performance didn’t work, standing in the kitchen with uncertainty.
Production and Arrangements
The Romantic is a short, sleek album made by people who know exactly how to build records like this. Mars’s voice remains one of the most reliable instruments in pop music, sonically Chicano soul at its finest. The production gives every song a reason to exist beyond just the words.
Conclusion
The Romantic proves Bruno Mars can inhabit the oldies-soul tradition with as much ease as he did funk, reggae, or New Jack Swing. This is the most cohesive thing he’s made, and the Chicano soul commitment gives it a gravity his earlier records chased through flash.
