Review 3: Lainey Wilson - Whirlwind

#36 Lainey Wilson - Whirlwind

#36 Laney Wilson - Whirlwind

This is the 3rd "new" album review. (See the "Perfect Album" which outlines these reviews.

Laney Wilson is an country artist I've never heard of before since I don't listen to country or even modern country music. Ever. So this should be interesting!

What Billboard had to say about it:

The 14-track set, which earned a top 10 debut on the Billboard 200, offers a tour through romantic ballads (“Counting Chickens,” “Call a Cowboy”), obstinate kiss-offs (the spoken-word “Ring Finger”), songs about stinging breakups (“Devil Don’t Go There”) and nods at her home genre’s current moment in the cultural zeitgeist (“Country’s Cool Again”). Leading all of them is Wilson’s soaring, twangy vocal. Whirlwind could also become an awards-season darling, as it’s nominated for best country album at the 2025 Grammys.

Best country album of 2025 apparently. Well okay. Let's see what's here.

1. Keep up with Jones

Acoustic guitar driven with a short slap back on the vocals. Definitely a country melody. Her voice reminds me of that Dolly Parton twang. The southern accent shines through. With a "train keeps a rolling" rhythm.

2. Country's Cool Again

Bluesy country. That same slap back reverb going on. Very much the same structure as the previous song, starts in a lower register while the chorus kicks up the intensity. Very typical chord progression. Catchy chorus. Good production on the recording shines through.

3. Good Horses - feat.Miranda Lambert

Most interesting sounding intro and verse so far. Acoustic guitar & voices take center stage with longer reverb on the voice this time and it sounds better. Background mandolin part. Interesting soundscape on this one. Love the acoustic solo.

4. Broken Hearts Still Beat

Ballad. The slap back reverb has returned. Her voice stays the same no matter what song, it's always on 100%. Whoever was the engineer assistant who had to move all the vocals to be perfect, kudos. Obligatory organ part. Not really feeling this song.

5. Whirlwind

Starts out with an Edge delay guitar. Long reverb this time on the vocals. Typical pop type build up, adds bass drum. Chorus kicks it in. Much more pop than country so far. I hear influences from alt pop, indie and country. Not a banger but good enough.

6. Call a Cowboy

Acoustic & slide guitar, pedal steel. Love the twanging tele in this one. This one's in 6/8 time, so it automatically gets a +1 from me. Slide solo is well done - very nice. Nearly three quarters into the song it goes into a filter to setup the banging end of the song with distorted rock guitar.

7. Hang Tight Honey

Totally different feel. Up tempo. This one's straight from a country song template. Strange reminders of Kenny Loggins "Footloose". No it doesn't sound like it but... there ya go.

8. Bar in Baton Rouge

Ethereal start with synth. Acoustic guitar comes in. Sound is about looking at a beer label and thinking about the Rockies in a bar in Baton Rouge. Great use of instrumentation on this song. I hear R&B funky keys which adds a little flavor. Song structure is very formulaic. Typical stops and the drops.

9. Counting Chickens

Acoustic guitar comes in and immediately remind me of "Never Going Back Again" from Fleetwood Mac's Rumours. Simple song. Well produced but I would have rathered left the synth and electric guitars and kept it simple but the drums and slide guitar comes in - but not over doing it.

10. 4x4xU

Initial 70's keys and feel felt good. Very Dolly-like. Catchy lyric, and there's a bridge. That's unusual - no one uses bridges any more. Otherwise nothing spectacular.

11. Ring Finger

Starts off with a distorted guitar jam, then goes into a "Heart of Glass" type of country rap? Add the synths. A mix of Blondie, R&B and country melody. A bit funky - a nice change from the prior 10 songs. Nice synth stabs. Props for creativity.

12. Middle of It

Better vocals - softer. Fits the song. Chorus goes back to the standard country bass/drum. Nice twanging tele again which I dig. The rest of the song is ok.

13. Devil Don't Go There

Twangy acoustic - I like the rhythm of this one. The background lap steel is nice filler instead of keyboards or synth. I wish this one had a longer solo.

14. Whiskey Colored Crayon

This has Lord Huron song vibes. Long reverbs, sort of ethereal. An okay song.

Overall view:

So Laney's voice reminds me always of a new Dolly Parton. It stuck with me the entire album. Her voice is strong. All these songs are very well sung. Excellent annunciations and pronunciation. The harmonies are there but probably done with a VST plugin or harmonizer since they are exact with the main melody in every single way including tone and timing. What really grated on me was the constant use of slap back reverb on her voice tracks. I wish that was a different decision in the studio. The production is top rate - many someone's know exactly how to record, mix and use instrumentation. The genre isn't my genre - it's so polished that it's difficult to think humans made this album or wrote these songs. If someone said this is an AI album, I'd believe them. The lyrical style is that of old rock and folk songs - telling a story. Something Top 40 pop songs don't bother with any longer. Country has taken the place of Rock & Roll - it has lots of the same bits and bobs, but the melody is all country music.

That said, the songs were on the generic side. There were no "bangers" that just reach out and grab you by the collar and shake the hell out of you. A few stand outs was "Ring Finger" which had a totally different feel to it than most of the album (which I appreciate). The best song of the 14 was "Call a Cowboy" as I can hear that song on the next season of "Landman". Lyrically I like "Good Horses" as my second place song on the album. The song starts off amazing as is the chorus, "I don't need map, I don't need a road, I don't need a fence, I just need to roam, if you want to love me, you don't need a rope, you just need to know good horses come home."

5.5/10