Hi everyone, Firsthony Timetano here, the Internet's busiest music nerd, and it's time for a review of this new Ryan Beatty album, Sweet Fortune.

California native singer-songwriter Mr. Ryan Beatty, he is back with his first album since 2023's Calico; it is his fourth record. Over the last 15 years that Ryan has been active in the music industry, he has not only dropped a number of his own projects but worked with the likes of Tyler, the Creator, Beyoncé, Brockhampton, the last of which I'm pretty sure was my introduction to him and his work. But again, his success and visibility has only grown since those days, going back to that work he did with Beyoncé. He even won a Grammy for that.

But as much as I loved the Cowboy Carter era, Ryan himself has yet to put out a project that has really stopped me in my tracks. But I was encouraged going into this album knowing he was trying to create a more emotionally charged experience here, writing about the joys of love, long-distance relationships, evolving as a person, and trying to back these songs up with more lush and layered instrumentation, too.

This record, from what I understand, was also recorded in New York, with Ryan trying to push himself out of that LA comfort zone. But honestly, from my perspective, you wouldn't know it given just how cozy and unadventurous this album sounds.

With Sweet Fortune, I did kind of have my fingers crossed that Ryan was truly going to deliver something that was a little stunning and stand out and to a degree even mature, given that we are 4 records deep now. He has clearly had enough time at this point to really write and record and incubate. But Sweet Fortune, at least to my ears, is not quite as mature and definitive and fully realized as maybe it was intending to be, 'cause I don't really know what this album is trying to do outside of deliver a super palatable set of singer-songwriter tunes that might catch the ears of listeners who tend to mix up agreeable music with enjoyable and engaging music.

Yes, Sweet Fortune is most definitely a listenable album, but that is maybe the biggest compliment you could pay its 37 minutes, very little of which is actually evocative, catchy, or thrilling.

And look, I don't want to fully count Ryan's creativity out here. Since his Boy in Jeans era, the guy has clearly gotten a lot better with and more focused on song structure, and there are moments on these tracks as well, here and there, that do tug at my heartstrings lyrically. Not to mention, on these tracks I can kinda tell he has been putting in some effort to study some of the American songbook greats, making nods to some classic soul and bluegrass and vocal jazz. Names like Paul Simon and Billy Joel come to mind, as well. But again, even if the tracklist on this thing does feel like it's pulling a lot of inspiration from that songbook, the final result comes across more like a speed reading session than a true deep dive into it.

Not to mention, I don't really think Ryan is living up to many of these sounds and eras of popular music vocally, because even 4 albums in, this guy sings lead on his own songs like he is being vastly underpaid to do background vocals for another artist. Because while I can compliment Ryan on consistently very much being on pitch, I wish him and his collaborators put half as much effort into making these performances more emotional. Because nearly every track on this record is performed with this kind of flat, lifeless, boyish affectation that makes Rex Orange County and Frank Ocean sound like they're coming at the mic with the amount of fire Otis Redding was during his heyday.

I would say another point of comparison for me as far as a modern artist is also Father John Misty. The more heavily arranged singer-songwriter ballads on this record remind me of some of his work, but if you could kind of strip out all of the whimsy, pain, and drama — basically anything that makes this style of music interesting to listen to.

And look, while I don't mind an artist kind of, you know, building their record and songs off of some, you know, sort of starter kit chord progressions, at least put a performance on top of them that is worth getting excited and emotional about. And also maybe lay it out with instrumentals that don't sound like they were budgeted around a sale on Splice.

Look, I do think at the core of this record there are some decent tunes, and Ryan's words on love and relationships can be pretty compelling too. And there are at least a few tracks deeper into the album where Ryan's singing does get more expressive, like against the swells of strings on the track "Too Many Ways," or "Annie, Anything" too, where Ryan's voice actually sounds best when it's presented in a more kind of stripped-back, naked context, not with these sort of like decked-out chorus passages that make his vocals feel more sterile and more plain and inoffensive than they actually are.

But at the end of the day, that's kind of my number one issue with the record. Nearly everything on this album feels like a more watered-down and toothless version of something else I've already heard, even recently.

Unfortunately, in Ryan's attempt, I think, at making a record that is a little more studied and mature and kind of more inspired by these classic sounds and artists and records, I think he has sort of like illustrated how much further he has to go before he is writing and recording a record on that level. In terms of lyrics, musical quality, production quality, quality of vocal performance too. Which is why I'm feeling about a light to decent 5 on this album.

Anthony Fantano, Ryan Beatty. Forever.