Life Rolls On

Life Rolls On is an appropriately laissez-faire title for Florida Georgia Lines fourth album, a name that captures not just the laid-back vibe of Brian Kelley and Tyler Hubbard but crystallizes the duos aesthetic. Kelley and Hubbard arent especially concerned with pushing forward into new musical or emotional territory. Theyre so comfortable in their skin, theyre happy to recycle old ideas, sounds, and hooks, going so far as to reunite with their old Cruise buddy Nelly for a remix of his Lil Bit at the end of the deluxe edition of Life Rolls On. Its been nearly a decade since Cruise, so FGLs formula isnt quite fresh, plus the pair do sound older: theyre a little bit slower and smoother than they were at the dawn of the 2000s, making music that veers toward adult contemporary even as it trades in skittish electronic beats and is basked in a digital sheen. Chalk this up to age but also the fact that in 2021, the duo are as much a brand as a band. Florida Georgia Line promise slick romance, gilded patriotism, happy hour anthems, and mellow party tunes, and thats exactly what they deliver on Life Rolls On -- nothing less and certainly nothing more. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine