Dierks Bentley Recruits Maren Morris, Elle King for New Album ‘Black’

“This is more of a relationship-based album, and I tried to go a little bit darker on it and make it about the shadowy edges of love,” says Dierks Bentley of his eighth studio album Black. The singer, who will co-host the ACM Awards with Luke Bryan on Sunday night, has announced the track list for the album, and its titles — like “Pick Up,” “What the Hell Did I Say” and “Can’t Be Replaced” — paint a picture of a relationship in flux. Black will be released May 27th.

The album also boasts some special guests. Maren Morris duets on “I’ll Be the Moon”; Elle King shows up on “Different for Girls”; and the New Orleans shout-out “Mardi Gras” features Crescent City musician Trombone Shorty. Lead single “Somewhere on a Beach” is currently inside the Top 10 on Billboard’s country charts. Bentley says the song, a reckless jam about trying to replace your lover, doesn’t represent the whole of Black.

“I’m trying to write a book here, and you can’t just read Chapter 7 and understand the whole album,” he tells Rolling Stone Country. “If you were looking for a CliffsNotes version of the record, the song ‘Black’ would represent the album best. . . I feel like ‘Somewhere on a Beach’ is the part of the story where you find a new girl and the lustful crazy stage of the spectrum, but [Black] gets downright lonesome on some other tracks.”

Bentley will launch his Somewhere on a Beach Tour, with Randy Houser and Cam, in May.

Here’s the full track list for Black:
1. Black
2. Pick Up
3. I’ll Be the Moon (feat. Maren Morris)
4. What the Hell Did I Say
5. Somewhere on a Beach
6. Freedom
7. Why Do I Feel
8. Roses and a Time Machine
9. All the Way to Me
10. Different for Girls (feat. Elle King)
11. Mardi Gras (feat. Trombone Shorty)
12. Light It Up
13. Can’t Be Replaced