Justin Bieber – “Swag II” review

London, Ontario, Canada singer/songwriter Justin Bieber returning for his 8th LP. Signing to Island Records during my time in middle school to put out My Worlds & Under the Mistletoe only to fulfill his obligations with them on Believe & Journals. He has since been on Def Jam Recordings for the past decade & Purpose marked a divisive debut for the label, although Changes & Justice was equally as bad as a great deal of his Island output. Swag coincided with Clipse’s comeback Let God Sort ‘Em Out couple months ago & a sequel has surprisingly arrived over 2 weeks away from former 7-time WWE tag team champions Adam Copeland & Christian Cage taking on former 2-time AEW World Tag Team Champions, 6-time WWE tag team champions, ROH World Tag Team Champions & IWGPタッグ王座 FTR at All Out V.

“Speed Demon” was an upbeat pop intro singing about him feeling as if he’s only getting better with each album & “checking these chickens” whereas “Better Man” goes for an alternative R&B vibe promising his wife Hailey no bitterness when he holds her hand. “Love Song” produced by Mk.gee colorfully sings about time only getting prettier with his soulmate leading into “I Do” venting over these feelings that won’t wash away.

Meanwhile on “I Think You’re Special”, we have JB atmospherically singing about breaking all the rules with Hailey & their love being unlike any other just before “Mother in You” observes that his son Jack looks a lot like his mom over a bedroom pop instrumental. “Witchya” vents about the feeling of being stuck in place staying by his wife if she needs him while “Eye Candy” encourages his partner to enjoy the moment with him.

“Don’t Wanna” featuring Bakar has a bit of a funkier direction to the beat from Mike WiLL Made-It singing about not wanting to give any fucks while “Bad Honey” expressed Biebs’ desire of wanting to dance with Hailey & making a scene out of it simultaneously. “Need It” moodily sings about wanting his wife to let him know if she’s feeling emotional likening her to cinnamon sugar while “Oh Man” opens up regarding him & the love of his life igniting one another.

Hurricane Chris appears for a bulk of “Poppin’ My Shit” blending pop rap & trap talking about their lil’ mamas wanting to be right beside them acting exactly the way they do while “All the Way” taps in with DJ Camper to promise Justin’s wife that he won’t ever let go of her. “Petting Zoo” finds himself drunk not wanting to fight with Hailey by any means asking why they’re arguing when he never said he was wrong or right while the indie folk-influenced “Moving Fast” sings about slowing down the ride & rollin’ the windows down for her.

“Safe Space” professes JB’s desire to take all of Hailey’s pain away from her & protect her from anything while “Lyin’” kicks the funk back in a little to sing about him telling the truth when he said he loved his wife. “Dotted Line” puts a lo-fi aesthetic on the bedroom pop style taking it slow & going back to basics while “Open Up Your Heart” featuring Eddie Benjamin pleads for their partners to tell them the way they really feel.

The song “When It’s Over” pushes towards the end of Swag II getting in over his head every time they go blow for blow, which results in his words ricocheting & cutting straight through him while “Everything Hallelujah” prior to the 8 minute spoken word outro “Story of God” praises God for everything from the Sun being out to the affection he’s consistently showering Hailee with.

Swag was one of the more admirable offerings in Justin Bieber’s discography even if I still didn’t care for it & the follow-up was as equally uninteresting than the predecessor earlier this summer. The musical palette’s similar to last time from contemporary R&B to bedroom pop, pop, pop soul, alternative R&B & alt-pop expanding on the original themes of marriage & fatherhood that still doesn’t grab me the same way as Earl Sweatshirt’s new album Live Laugh Love or Dominic Fike’s recent mixtape Rocket did.

Score: 2/5

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