Colter Wall boasts one of the more distinctive voices in country music. His sturdy baritone brings grit and gravity to his take on the genre, which blends outlaw traditionalism with the distinct, often brooding sensibilities of Wall’s Canadian upbringing. On his fourth studio album, Wall revisits the highly narrative songwriting of 2018’s Songs of the Plains while sonically calling up some of the influences—Marty Robbins and Stan Jones among them—of 2020’s Western Swing & Waltzes and Other Punchy Songs. Recording alongside co-producer Patrick Lyons, Wall brought his wildly acclaimed touring band to accompany him on the LP, which the group recorded in Wimberly, Texas. The sum total of these efforts is a showcase not just for his voice but for how he’s elevated his songcraft, which trades in quirky characters and keen observations—not to mention his knack for finding a cover (the striking “Evangelina”) to fit seamlessly in the mix. Other standouts include the title track, which nods to the uplifting power of music without indulging in sentimentality, and the heartfelt closer “The Last Loving Words”, a road-weary waltz that sends listeners off in wistful fashion.