So the wonderful and rather dreamy Brad Paisley has a new album out (as if you didn’t know…) Moonshine in the Trunk. And it’s a good one.

After a very clever run up before the launch that involved Brad “leaking” tracks via twitter many of the fans had heard at least a few of the songs before the album dropped.  The rather ingenious idea of having Brad give the fans  a “sneak peak” of his new work created a storm on twitter and Facebook.  Surely a PR stunt in disguise but did we really mind? No.  We had a chance to play along with him and we loved it.

The album itself is Brad at his best. After the controversy of last years Accidental Tourist Brad is back on form with toe tapping rhythms, catchy lyrics and songs that will guarantee to make you dance. Sometimes it sounds like its leaning a little more towards “pop” than “country” but ultimately you won’t be disappointed.

Notable songs include High Life, a rather amusing duet with Carrie Underwood that talks about reaping the benefits of his grandfather’s death (pun intended) and the rather lovely Perfect Storm (I know ladies…we all wish he was singing about us…)

The title song Moonshine in the Trunk is an uptempo country song with steel guitar and fiddle. Its fun and sounds great. The guitar picking alone is awesome. But its not my favourite track from the album. That title goes to the wonderful River Bank. Seriously I can’t get enough of this song and have had it on repeat constantly. It has everything in it that I love about country music: great lyrics, fantastic riffs and a tune that you won’t be able to stop humming. Yes, its a little cliche. Brad sings about drinking and trucks and (of course) going down to the river (some would argue that most modern country songs consist of little else) but that’s why its so great. It’s like listening to a brand new song that you already know the words to.

Musically theres a lot of variety on this album; from ballads to summer anthems. Some critics may say it’s not his best work but this is the Brad that we all know and love and his die hard fans won’t be left wanting.  For the rest of you…just listen to River Bank. If you’re not smiling and tapping your foot by the end of it then you must have the mute button on.