It’s been two years without a solo album from the country music sensation Zach Bryan. His highly anticipated album, “With Heaven on Top,” is a continuation of the story and album named Zach Bryan that was released in 2023 and is rated his best album on Apple Music. “With Heaven on Top” has twenty-five well-written, heartfelt songs, and there are a few upbeat songs mixed in, like “Santa Fe” and “Rivers and Creeks.” The mix of songs will have you in your feelings, along with songs you could sing at the top of your lungs, which is a mix Zach Bryan has always been able to do unbelievably well. “With Heaven On Top” became the #1 streamed album after only ten hours since its release and passed Taylor Swift’s album “The Life of a Showgirl,” which has been number one since Oct. 3rd, 2025. The instant popularity has quickly spread across social media with the song “Bad News,” which was teased months ago, along with “Plastic Cigarette.”
The first song on the album, “Down, Down, Stream,” sets the stage for the story, where Zach Bryan recounts his perspective as a child about his father’s apartment in New York City. This was a very similar first song we have seen from him, just like in the album “Zach Bryan,” which follows an identical story with his old man. Every song had something to it that made it great; not one song was bad or even mediocre. I thought the weakest song of the album was easily “Aeroplane,” and it was really just a forgettable song. I also thought “All Good Things Past” was pretty weak and felt like a filler song. The songs that stood out for me were “Sundown Girls,” “Plastic Cigarette,” “Appetite,” “South and Pine,” and “Runny Eggs.” What stood out about this album was its freshness, while still maintaining the familiar Zach Bryan vibe.
“With Heaven on Top” could become Zach Bryan’s best overall album because he put in some absolute bangers. His other albums, like “American Heartbreak,” had 34 total songs, which were too long and had some bad songs mixed in as fillers. The album “DeAnn” had 12 total songs, but every song was very good. However, you didn’t get many songs, and the rest of the year was filled with 39 minutes of Zach Bryan. The new album had a great mix of quality to quantity, where the number of songs in this album felt just right, and every single song was great. In prior years, this was my biggest flaw with Zach Bryan’s developments because getting almost forty songs in an album and only three or four songs being songs I would listen to over again was not a great mix and left me with an empty feeling album.
The most interesting song produced in “With Heaven on Top” was definitely “Rivers and Creeks.” Zach Bryan goes from trying to sound like Post Malone with some very weird voice cracks, then tries to pick it up and sound like Elvis. Trying to put something out there that the fans haven’t seen before is something I really like. I really dig this song, and think it’s one of the most underrated Zach Bryan has released in the past few years. The overall message of this album was to prioritize good and God over the hardships life brings along the way. In one song, “Bad News,” Bryan criticizes ICE and how the “American Dream” is fading for many people. He sings, “ICE is gonna come bust down your door, Try to build a house no one builds no more.” The song also focuses on the strong opinions people hold and how they are tearing the people of our country apart.
This album really takes a step back from the newer rap country that received massive amounts of attention over the last couple of years and is one of the most popular types of music in the country right now. Zach Bryan hasn’t taken the risk of making a newer and more modern country album, but with country music in general making a comeback in recent years, Zach Bryan knows how to dig deep into the genre’s roots. I could not recommend this album enough to people who like country, people who like sad songs, and really anyone in general. Older people would also like this album because it is truly a staple of old-style country music. Additionally, please, when listening to “With Heaven on Top,” listen to it in order. Zach Bryan told his fans to listen to it from one to 25, and it could not be more true. The story behind the album is excellent, and knowing the message only adds to its overall quality.
“With Heaven on Top” was such an amazing album and is certainly one of the best albums he has produced to date, adding to the success he has achieved in his short career. Zach Bryan made an absolutely stacked album with plenty of good songs.
“With Heaven On Top:” ★★★★★
