Album Review: Bruno Mars, The Romantic

The newest full-length release from Bruno Mars arrives after 10 years away from the solo spotlight. Clocking in at nine songs and just over half-an-hour, The Romantic joins the recent trend of refreshingly concise pop albums that prioritise quality over sprawl.

Blending Latin-pop influences, the record unfolds as a tidy love story: Mars vows to 'Risk It All’; things evolve into 'Something Serious’; heartbreak leaves him with 'Nothing Left’; and he ultimately pleads for one final 'Dance With Me.'

Historically, Mars’ music goes down smooth and easy, and The Romantic is no different in that regard; it’s sure to add to the singer’s already crowded oeuvre of wedding reception classics. Unfortunately, at times it also lapses into pop cliché.

'Something Serious' essentially copies and pastes the groove from Santana and Tito Puente’s’'Oye Como Va’, and given the recent Latin music resurgence led by Bad Bunny, Mars’ effort to lightly showcase his Puerto Rican background for the first time feels somewhat on the nose.

That said, The Romantic is still likely to conquer the charts in a way only the platinum-selling Mars can achieve.

6/10