Daughtry: Dearly Beloved (2021) Review

As the brooding synths of opening track Desperation collide against a wall of drums and Fender Stratocaster feedback, it becomes abundantly clear that Daughtry are no longer fucking around.

Gone is the cosmetic pop which has plagued their last two LPs, and in it’s place a real sense of musical freedom.

The end result is the best album of their career.

“This is the record which I’m most proud of in my career because we did it by ourselves from start to finish. Every record leading up to this had at least one song, often more, that I was not fully on board with, you know? Now that we’re in control of our music I wasn’t trying to write a radio song, or a rock song, or whatever. I was just writing what I felt. It was such a gratifying experience.”

– Chris Daughtry

“This is the record which I’m most proud of in my career because we did it by ourselves from start to finish.

Every record leading up to this had at least one song, often more, that I was not fully on board with, you know?

Now that we’re in control of our music I wasn’t trying to write a radio song, or a rock song, or whatever. I was just writing what I felt. It was such a gratifying experience.”

– Chris Daughtry

Having shot to fame on American Idol in 2006, Daughtry spent several years winning over rock audiences with three very solid albums (Daughtry, Leave This Town, and Break The Spell).

They made the strange decision to swap rock for pop on troubled fourth LP Baptized (2013), and the commercial failure of the album led to a five year break but, to the dismay of fans, upon their return they chose to double down on pop with the lacklustre Cage To Rattle (2018).

It genuinely felt like their run was over.

So what’s changed?

Well, frontman Chris Daughtry explains that the expiration of the band’s deal with RCA Records is a major factor in them picking up their guitars again.

He tells us that their unexpected pivot from rock to pop was a record label decision, with execs putting relentless pressure on him to create more hits in the vein of Home and What About Now (from their debut) which could be pushed towards the coveted Billboard Hot 100.

When their deal with RCA finally expired in 2020, Daughtry declined lucractive offers from rival labels and instead started their own – Dogtree Records – in order to regain creative control of their music.

If new album Dearly Beloved is anything to go by then this already feels like the right choice.

"We better run for cover,
The writing is on the wall,
Gotta take our power back,
Before they take us all."

ASYLUM

What we’re getting here isn’t merely a return to rock, but rather a hybrid of everything which Daughtry have done over the years.

You’ll hear elements of the post-grunge of their storming debut alongside the catchy Bon Jovi-style rock of Break The Spell, and while this provides the bulk of the musical direction of the album, they’ve also managed to frame each track with the synth landscapes which ruled Cage To Rattle – and there’s even a few small traces of the Baptized’s ill-fated pop!

It’s impressive how each of these jigsaw pieces is able to slots together so nicely to create a record which feels full of life, brimming with renewed confidence, and damn satisfying to listen to.

There are many highlights scattered throughout Dearly Beloved’s 49-minutes, but killer track Evil does perhaps the best job of summarizing all of the changes which have been made to Daughtry’s sound.

It delivers cool synth effects, catchy strings arrangements, an unforgettable chorus and – wait for it – even a fucking guitar solo.

Rejoice!

It’s not alone, either, because other standouts like Changes Are Coming and Cry For Help are there to provide long-time fans with extra helpings of the crunchy pop-rock which they’ve been missing since Chris and co. decided to go rogue all those years ago.

Elsewhere, The Victim finally manages to perfect the funky, synth-driven pop which Daughtry were striving for on 2018’s ill-fated Cage To Rattle.

It’s an absolute barmstomer of a track, easily ranking alongside their best.

This is nestled nicely between the powerful … Lioness and the devastatingly effective Heavy Is The Crown.

The first is an ode to Chris Daughtry’s wife which contains one of the best bridge sections in recent years, and the latter is a mid-tempo rocker which feels significantly louder than anything they’ve ever made before (seriously, tears of joy await when those guitars crash in at the end of the first chorus!).

Honestly, we still can’t quite believe this has happened.

"When the weight of the world's crashing,
Pushing you closer to the edge"

HEAVY IS THE CROWN

It’s not perfect, mind you.

The forgettable Somebody sees the band slip back into the bad habits of days gone by, thanks to a lifeless pop beat which sucks the whole track into it’s ultra-dull void.

This is made worse by some very poor lyrics (e.g. “Everybody needs somebody, everybody needs someone” x8).

It’s immediately followed Call You Mine, a by-the-numbers acoustic track which simply cannot compete against the stellar acoustic work of their past.

While these tracks are usually considered “bread and butter” for Chris Daughtry, here we find that the unnecessarily atmospheric production actually backfires, making what should’ve been a catchy ballad sound overproduced and bland.

Considering the failure of their last two records, an early prediction that Daughtry would release one of the best albums of 2025 would seem tantamount to madness.

Yet here we are.

Choc-full of catchy melodies and thoughtful lyrics, Dearly Beloved is an instant classic.

Against all odds, Daughtry have managed to reclaim their rightful place as one of rock’s elite acts with a record which somehow manages to combine all of the best elements from their earlier work into one satistying, cohesive, very effective listening experience.