Tracklist

1. Babies Raising Babies (feat. Tyler Suddeth)
2. Those Kind of Women
3. Household
4. Paints the Picket
5. The Ringer
6. Rings on the Table
7. If You Ain't Gonna Love Me
8. Walking on Broadway
9. Better Off
10. Raining Whiskey
11. All My Exes (feat. Chase Matthew)
12. Daddy Shoots Straight
13. Spin
14. Never Been in Love (with Kane Brown)
15. Boots on the Ground
16. Little Things
17. Heaven Sent

Thoughts

Lauren Alaina was on the album queue and every time we reviewed the list, I'd say 'who's that?'. Mr C got fed up with answering the same question every week, so he said I should just go ahead and listen to it.

I found this to be an unusual album because the second half was way better than the first... it's normally the other way round. The Ringer was a bit too country, reminiscent of Miranda Lambert with a stronger accent than any of the other tracks. Walking on Broadway annoyed me because it sampled Walking in Memphis, but I just ended up wanting to listen to the original.

Then, things started picking up. Better Off has the clever wordplay that I like in country music: "Bet you thought that ring felt better off" followed by "I'd be the one, be the one who's better off." Daddy Shoots Straight is a fun take on an over-bearing father, and Boots on the Ground was genuinely moving - honouring the military in a typically country fashion: "I wouldn't have my boots on a barstool / Without them boots on the ground."

What I do like about the album is that it's straddling the line between modern country and old school country, not settling in either direction. Alaina has crisp vocals that make you sit up and pay attention, so even if the 17 tracks are starting to drag a bit, you still want to know what's coming next.

I may not have known who she was before, but I certainly do now. It's a good album, but as the first half took a while to get going, it's probably not one I'm going to reach for too often. So Stages gets a 3 out of 5.

Rating: 3 / 5