Hi, everyone! Bangthany Bangtano here, the internet's busiest music nerd, and it's time for a review of this new Ella Langley record, Dandelion.

Dandelion is the second full-length LP from Alabama, singer and songwriter Miss Ella Langley, the follow-up to her 2024 debut, Hungover. Now, I'm no Nostradamus, but if I were to bet, I'd say that 2026 is gonna go down as the year of Ella, as she's handily the biggest breakout artist we have seen crop up in the last six months. And not only has this new album been doing massive numbers for her, but as of me shooting this video, she has three songs in the top ten! With "Choosin' Texas" being the biggest of the three, a song that is number one right now and has been on the charts for 40 entire weeks.

So with me now covering this album and being obviously pretty late to doing that, I'm more or less like addressing an elephant in the room.

An elephant with a cowboy hat. Because, not only does country music's commercial caché continue to grow deeper into the 2020s, but it's obviously bringing new names and faces along with it as well. Now, for those of you who don't know, Ella actually grew up in a pretty musical family and sang in local Southern Baptist Church community jam sessions. And the inclusions of the song, "Froggy Went A Courtin'" on this record is actually a callback to her late-grandfather, who she used to sing this song with. And as the story goes, Ella actually learned to play guitar on his guitar after he passed.

Like a lot of other new-gen music stars, though, Ella, of course, got her start uploading her songs and performances to YouTube, doing live streams, posting on TikTok, and was eventually discovered and signed by Sony Music Nashville in 2023. And her debut album that I mentioned earlier actually didn't do too bad for her either, peaking at number 20 on the Billboard 200, and even had a top 30 hit on it with, "You Look Like You Love Me."

But for Dandelion, Ella not only wanted to take more time in writing and creating this album, because with her earlier releases, she really was hitting the ground running, getting signed, and pumping out songs and recordings right away. And she also went with a symbolic title this time around as well, as she kind of sees the Dandelion as a plant, a flower that, can thrive in the harshest of conditions.

And there are a lot of themes of hardship around this album. Romantic hardship, the general highs and lows of life, too. Dandelion also has 19 tracks on it, an hour-long runtime, so it's a pretty dense listen. And at first, I didn't really see what was so special about the album myself. I mean, the "Froggy Went A Courtin'" intro is cute for sure, but the first leg of this thing doesn't really offer a whole lot to write home about. First, there's the title track, and off the bat, the production and mastering on this one are terrible. It's kind of like Ella and her collaborators heard Kacey Musgrave's Star-Crossed and saw how that album sounded as something to emulate, even though it's handily her worst project.

The drums on this thing are way louder than the vocals. Then the burst of guitars, bass, and background singing on the chorus kind of hits like this totally featureless, textureless wave of sound. Almost like a mystery-meat blend of music. It's simultaneously loud and bland.

So yeah, not a good start. And then following this, of course, we have the viral "Choosin' Texas," which I've heard multiple times as a single. It's more or less fine, and hearing it within the context of the album isn't exactly wowing me. And I understand the appeal of this track from, a marketing perspective. It's perfectly palatable, it's catchy, Ella is a more-than-competent singer.

Plus, you have some trademark country wordplay and some jilted lover storytelling with Ella dying to be chosen over a woman from Texas. And it's just not happening. And Ella can see the signs in this guy who she's showing interest in based on all of the things cropping up in his behavior and so on and so forth, that sort of nod toward Texan culture. It's a track that's bittersweet in its heartbreak, but also clever humor.

The song "We Know Us" after this, to me, is a lot closer to cooking with gas. It's a dazzling piece of pop country that kind of calls back, in my opinion, to Dolly Parton's countrypolitan era. There's a slight 70s feel to it. It's kind of danceable, but it has a modern flair to it. With some decent writing about just this general unpredictability in this relationship. Then the song "Low Lights" is another moment that I can't help but feel like is a bit of lost potential. It's a piano ballad with a pretty strong vocal performance. It leans heavily into some string sections, too, during its heaviest moments.

But once again, the production on this track kind of condenses it all down in such a way to where it feels very hefty and dense and thick. And you never really get a chance to appreciate how spacious and grandiose all of the layers really are.

Then "Be Her" is the other kind of major hit from this record. And one that, frankly, leaves me scratching my head because, once again, we are listening to an over-compressed piece of country slop where the drum beat is so huge, gigantic, rigid, dumb, and chunky. Completely sucks the soul out of the groove of the song. And feels almost at odds with Ella's vocals, which, by comparison, are a lot more nuanced. At least Ella's vocals and the lyricism aren't too bad. I sort of, see the "Be Her, Be Hurt" wordplay there. And I guess, who can't relate to a bit of a jealousy-bop? Again, it's okay, but instrumentally, it could be a lot better than what it is.

Then "You & Me Time" might be my least favorite track on this record. As, for me, it's just peak lyrical pandering. There's nothing wrong with writing a flirty song about your lover and getting together, but the lyricism is about as specific and sexy as a drugstore greeting card paired with some clearance aisle box wine. Again, for me, the start of this album is kind of a mixed bag.

But things, surprisingly, in my opinion, do pick up past this point into a very impressive run of songs in the middle of this record.

You have "Loving Life Again," which is a really endearing meditation on the highs and lows of life, as the title of this record suggests. And it's all about not letting the most miserable moments you're existing through eat you up entirely, as if you fight through them, lo and behold, you will reach a point where life is worth living once more. I love the descending melody line on the hook and the way that kind of ushers in these plucky acoustic lead melodies.

Then there's "Bottom of Your Boots", which is another country-pop fusion where the beats are way heavier than they need to be once again. But if anything, I feel like this track should be the "Be Her" of the record. It's infinitely more timely, and relatable too, given that Ella is asking this person she's with romantically to be fully invested in their relationship. Give it a label! She's not making any time for a situationship here! The track is pretty infectious and catchy, and once again, features a very solid vocal performance.

Then "Speaking Terms" is a godly acoustic ballad that is actually genuinely moving, and doesn't feel like it's simply being drummed up to appeal to an audience that will identify with its subject matter. These themes of, spiritual isolation and unanswered prayers. There's something about Ella's fears on this track that I thought were pretty universally relatable, and, her vocal performance relays a lot of conviction too.

Then "I Gotta Quit" is a nice, quality, punchy, peppy country rocker. Ella and her band are not holding back one bit on this one. Honestly, I would love a whole record worth of tracks just like this from her. I know I'm not gonna get it, but I would like that. And again, not only is the band grooving on this one, but most importantly, the song is funny. Ella actually has a pretty cool sense of humor on this one, talking about how she wants this person's kind of memory to go away. She doesn't want to be obsessed with this guy anymore. The band takes a break for a spare moment for her to say, "Scram! Get outta here!" And the various chord and tempo changes throughout the song make it a really fun listen, too. I would say this is also the case for "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels," which also has an unapologetically country flair to it.

And then "Last Call for Us" I feel like, is the last song on the record I really loved or got much enjoyment out of. Because as we near the finish of this record, the quality begins to get choppy once again. You have "Somethin’ Simple" which is, to my ears, a bit of a trad wife aspirational anthem with a sort of scuffed chorus where Ella throws in maybe one too many syllables for a phrase or a sentiment that could have been put much more simply. The Miranda Lambert collaboration is less than thrilling. The acoustic "Most Good Things Do" doesn't really pull me in in the same way that other tracks do that have more layered instrumentation. Then you've got the "Froggy Outro" and then the Morgan Wallen crossover, which, of all the huge commercial hits Ella's had over the past year, this is my least favorite one.

Still, with all of that being said, this album surprised me in more ways than one, honestly, as there were actually quite a few highlights on this thing to be had. And even if I'm not loving the major hits off of this record the most, there were at least some deep cuts that I truly loved and have no issue acknowledging that when it comes to modern mainstream country, you could do a lot worse than this. Which is why I'm feeling about a light 6 on this record.

Anthony Fantano, Ella Langley, forever.