Album Review: Tank - 'This is How I Feel'

On his fifth studio album, the R&B muscleman who goes by the stage name Tank gives us his best effort yet as a singer-songwriter. His This is How I Feel album, which was released in the U.S. May 8, 2012, is a well-rounded album of romantic-leaning songs. Although Tank, whose birth name is Durrell Babbs, does a solid job carrying most of the album by himself, it's actually the guest artists, including rappers T.I. and Busta Rhymes, as well as up-and-coming singer Kris Stephens, who bring with them the variety and diversity that helps push This is How I Feel to heights that it otherwise might not have reached.

Tank's This is How I Feel album manages to two things especially well. The first is mix the romantic with the sexual. Unlike some of his younger musical counterparts, Tank isn't all about finding as many different ways as he can to talk about sex, and isn't afraid to show a little vulnerability. His romantic side shines brightest on the album's last few songs, which coincidentally happen to be the album's best tracks. Among them is "Better Than Me," a piano-driven ballad where he sings about how happy he is that his ex has finally found and settled down with her Mr. Right. "I hope he treats you better, better than me," he sings. "You deserve a knight in shining armor." He also excels on "Lost It All," an earnest mid-tempo number where he laments the loss of his woman, declaring that every possession he has in the world is worthless without her: "I don't care if they take the house and all my rides," he sings on the chorus, "They can throw me in jail, tell the judge he can give me life, 'cause I already lost it all."
But the album's crown jewel just might be "Next Breath," a hopelessly romantic power ballad where Tanks sings to his woman about how sorry he is for his past misbehavior and how thankful he is that she didn't dump him. "I don't think I've ever really told you how much I need you/Girl, I need you more than my next breath," he sings. "I need you more than the next breath I breathe."

This album varies from some of Tank's past projects in that there's more musical and vocal variety within the tracks. Instead of consisting of wall-to-wall downtempo romantic ballads, This is How I Feel also has it's share of faster tempo tracks, most notably "Nowhere," a surprisingly strong collaboration with Busta Rhymes; and the slick-talking "Compliments," which features T.I. and female singer Kris Stephens. Interestingly, one of the few songs that doesn't come together particularly well is "Lonely," which features Chris Brown. As the song's title implies, it's supposed to be a track about a man who still hasn't gotten over his woman's leaving him a few weeks prior. The song is fine up until Chris Brown's part kicks in, where he alternately yells and curses his way through his vocals. The combination of his over-the-top, testosterone-fueled performance with the more mature, relatively sedate vocals by Tank make for a bad combination.
But overall, the bumps in the road here are few. For the most part, this is an album of seductive ballads and sexy mid-tempo tracks that will likely please most members of Tank's established fan base, plus maybe convert some new listeners into fans, as well.