Album Review Roundup: Vol. 1, No. 23

Kelsey Waldon leads the pack this week.

 

The Ting Tings

Home

Most of the time, I think Alan Jackson’s “Gone Country” is mean-spirited gatekeeping. Then something like this comes along that couldn’t be more strident in its attempted career reboot/pivot that I just shrug and say, “Look at them boots.”

(And, for what it’s worth, I still like the brattiness of “That’s Not My Name.”)

 

Jesse Daniel

Son of the San Lorenzo

He had arguably the finest album of the neo-trad contingent in 2024 and looks to repeat; beyond the technical chops and the genre know-how, it’s his commitment to doing something interesting with his persona that truly sets him apart from an increasingly crowded axis.

 

Lucas Nelson

American Romance

Of course he has all the goods for a rich solo career now that his band’s on hiatus, but this proper debut raises the question of whether S. Jennings is the right producer to bring his considerable gifts to bear. Nelson often sounds like he’s straining to be heard here.

 

Kelsey Waldon

Every Ghost

She continues to stick to her trad-country guns in ways that sound timeless, not out-of-time. It’s easy to imagine most of these tracks as genre canon-fodder had they been released in the early 70s, and she remains a vocalist of distinctive, singular presence.

 

William Beckmann

Whiskey Lies & Alibis

His singing is effortlessly great in a way that masks some of the more generic songwriting, and how nice to be able to say that about a mainstream-adjacent act in the country space in 2025. The 90s aesthetic here fits, then, for a guy who can really and truly sing.

 

Norman North

Songs I Never Sent… [EP]

A real talent who’s still not quite put everything together in a way that works consistently or cohesively. The hip-hop elements on these tracks are far more pedestrian than his usual MO, and the country flourishes are buried much farther in the mixes. Disappointing.

 

Joshua Ray Walker

Tropicana

Getting new music from him at all feels like such a huge win, all things considered. Here, the vibe and the singing are great, even when the songs aren’t. And even then, there’s something to be said for beach-themed songs that aim for more than just pure escapism.