Riser

*Riser* is a perfect example of what makes Dierks Bentley a true country modernist. The epic, unfolding cinematic atmospheres of \"Bourbon in Kentucky\" and \"I Hold On\" suggest a Music City-bred version of U2, while the \"whoa-oh-oh\" hooks of \"Pretty Girls\" are pure ’10s pop and \"Sounds of Summer\" is propelled by R&B-informed beats. But the bare-bones acoustic ballad \"Damn These Dreams\" and the banjo-inflected, party-hearty stomper \"Back Porch\" show that for all his forward-looking ways, Bentley never loses sight of his roots.

Check out our album review of Artist's Riser on Rolling Stone.com.

For a decade, every single Dierks Bentley release placed at least in Billboard's Country Top 20, usually making it to the Top Ten.