Country Stuff the Album

Recording information: Boomcity Studios; East Iris Studios, Nashville, TN; Fleauxmotion Studios, Franklin, TN; Ivory & Rye, Nashville, TN; Sound Emporium Studios, Nashville, TN; The Imagine Cabin, Franklin, TN.
Photographer: Robert Chavers.
"Country Stuff" finds Walker Hayes ambling through his favorite down-home things with the assistance of a barely discernible Jake Owen. Hayes' sly phrasing bears an evident smile, one he also has on the amiable hit single "Fancy Like," whose litany of simple pleasures echoes with those on "Country Stuff." The rest of the Country Stuff: The Album -- his first full album release since 2017's Boom. LP -- finds Hayes correcting how his Country Stuff EP spent too much time shifting to a lower gear. All those cuts are here: the sweet midtempo songs "Make You Cry" and "I Hope You Miss Me," then duetting with Carly Pearce on the gilded "What If We Did" and Lori McKenna on the intimate "Briefcase." Hayes acquits himself quite well on the smoother material -- he has enough personality to shine in these polished settings -- but he realized that the rangy, funny pair of "Country Stuff" and "Fancy Like" left a stronger impression, so he's added more songs in that vein: the woozy "Drinking Songs" and the wry "AA," plus the ridiculous and horny "U Girl." By doubling down on the silly, tacky qualities of "Fancy Like," Hayes winds up with a record that may be in slightly bad taste, but it's also a bunch of fun. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine