Crooked Highway

"Whereas 2006 EP Don't Play to Lose wandered with a gentle ease, the group's debut full-length moves in more focused, if experimentally flourished, directions. "Lonestar" opens with a lilting warp and rough guitar distortion, Russell's playful drawl shading Lyle Lovett. McMeans' soft trill on "Canary" and "Stardust" lifts the album into airier climes that balance Russell's earthier tones, like Alison Krauss with a Texas twang, the best songs marrying the two vocal impulses in duet."