Dierks Bentley – 2012 New Album Preview

Dierks Bentley's much-anticipated 2012 new album has been more or less completed since early this year, but the singer wasn't ready to let it hit his fans' ears until it was as polished and primed as could be. Now that it's up to Bentley's standards, he can unleash the beast: 'Home' will debut on Feb. 7, 2012.

The Inspiration
Based on what Bentley has said about the record thus far, it seems that as a whole it was inspired by his fans, and similarly, his time out on tour. “This album is more than a year’s worth of writing, recording and testing out material on the road in front of our hardcore fans,” Bentley spilled in a recent press release.

The Songs
Early in the year, Bentley dished that he sat down to write upwards of 60 songs with Nashville's best songwriters, which undoubtedly made it tough to pick out just 12 for the album. "I tried to narrow those down,” he said, adding, “and also listened to about 2,000 songs personally, and tried to whittle it all down to the top 20, 25 and take those in there and put out the top 11 or 12." The singer also gushed that he spent roughly 100 days writing tunes for the record, and while it didn't make waves in 2011, we know that it will be worth the wait when it finally impacts.

Bentley kicked off his sixth studio album with the first single 'Am I the Only One,' a feel good party track that certainly revved up the live audiences and got them urging for cold beer, if nothing else. He followed it up with a slower and more powerful hit in September, 'Home,' the title track which unites people of all different types through the idea that we all have that one place that's special in our hearts.

Listen to 'Am I the Only One' | Listen to 'Home'

What to Expect
The singles we've heard so far from Bentley's album couldn't be more different, which is exactly what the singer was hoping for when he put his best goods on the table. After testing the waters out on the open road, Bentley said to expect a hodgepodge of tried-and-true country songs. "The end result is an album that runs through all the types of country songs and sounds I enjoy singing and playing," he said. "I can’t wait to share it with the fans!”