Album Review: Miranda Lambert - Platinum

Miranda Lambert’s Platinum has a lot to live up to since she’s won ACM Album of the year awards for each of her three previous albums and has won multiple CMA And ACM Female Vocalist of the Year awards too boot. First single “Automatic” felt like the perfect bridge song from Four The Record toPlatinum as it blends a bit of what both albums have and Platinum is clearly a big evolution in Miranda Lambert’s musical journey. “Smokin’ And Drinkin’” (which features Little Big Town) is unlike anything she’s done before and might actually rub some folks the wrong way. The same could be said for the percussive loop-filled “Platinum.” Vocally and lyrically, it feels like something Miranda would do but melodically it’s different. Which is good.

“Little Red  Wagon is a rollicking throwback sounding rocker while  the lyrics of “Priscilla” show a vulnerability that discuss her life being married to a superstar, a star who ‘loves attention’, and how Priscilla (Presley) handled life in the spotlight or sharing her husband with his fans and that spotlight. It’s interesting that the song found its way to Miranda and there will be people who read perhaps too much into the song’s lyrics (Which wasn’t written by Miranda (it was written by Nicolle Galyon, Natalie Hemby and Jimmy Robbins).  

Miranda DOES write or co-write eight of the generous 16 track album that is Platinum, with “Automatic” being one of those. “Bathroom Sink” is an interesting one of her self-penned songs and it features no other songwriters. It’s a country/rocker and has a nice slice of homespun life to it. “Gravity Is A Bitch” has a humor streak to it  while “Two Rings Shy” also has a nice slice of southern humor running through the clever lyrics (written with Brandy Clark and Heather Little. The closer is the smooth and soothing “Another Sunday In The South,” another in a recent trend of songs which cleverly weave lines of songs, band names and such. There’s even Marty Raybon providing harmony vocals on the track.

There’s a cover of the Tom T. Hall/Dixie Hall “All That’s Left” featuring Vince Gill and The Time Jumpers while Brent Cobb’s “Old Shit” (written with Neil Mason) has a clever lyric line — not really — that will really resonate with people who don’t like the faster paced life that we’re going through these days. With 16 tracks, Platinum, has quite a bit of music to digest. But like her previous albums, it presents Miranda Lambert as who she is, one of the top stars in all of country music.