Lainey Wilson - "Sayin' What I'm Thinkin'"

[.indulgecountry]

Surprised no one made a thread for this yet, but Lainey Wilson's debut album, Sayin' What I'm Thinkin', finally came out on Friday.

[.indulgecountry]

Love that everyone's enjoying Carly's new EP, but please don't sleep on Lainey Wilson y'all!

I've been infatuated and had this album playing almost every chance I've gotten since it dropped, and this is coming from someone who was kinda indifferent on her prior to the album. I wasn't able to fully get into most of her standalone songs until they came together into this album and now I have newfound appreciation and enjoyment for all of them. She totally clicked for me with the album in ways she hadn't previously. There's sooooo many jams here and I love that she leans into the redneck/hillbilly tropes lyrically and her voice is a perfect fit for that lane, too.

My current faves:
"LA" -- this song is just one big hook after another. I am so addicted to this one and the When you think LA, I think Louisiana / Lower Alabama part has not left my subconscious since the first time I heard it. Soooo catchy and tbh pretty relatable 'cause I frequently see LA and think of the state first, lol
"Keeping Bars in Business" -- I mean, just look at that title and you can just already tell that this one is a winner. The way her voice glides across this one is so beautiful and it's a very strong lyric. The end of the 2nd verse about the old man still wearing his late wife's wedding ring 10 years to the day of her passing and the way she sings it is one of my favorite spots on the whole record. Chills.
"Neon Diamonds" -- everything about this song just makes it a jam. I can't not sing along to this when I start the album. The chorus is just MONEY. I also love the production so much on this one, especially the rattles that come out during the bridge. Stone cold country banger right here.
"Straight Up Sideways" -- basically all that I wrote about 'Diamonds' above applies to this. The lyrics are so undeniably country cleverness and someone in another thread said she's vaguely like a Gretchen Wilson for the new generation and that feels possibly most evident on this track.
"Things a Man Oughta Know" -- this is such a sneakily catchy song and I'm so happy it's showing early signs of possibly being a slow burn hit at country radio because not only does she need to get more success, this is just a deserving smash imo. Love the way her twang wraps around the chorus melody so simply but perfectly.

[codyj100]

I agree with .indulgecountry. Lainey's new album is one of the best I've heard in a long time. We haven't seen a major-label debut this well defined in a long time, imo. I'll come back and rank these when I have a bit more time. For now, I'm just going to keep running this album on repeat.

[austin]

Some of the production is a little loud for me. That said I need more listens with this, but the early standouts are “Neon Diamonds” and “LA.” Love those two!

[tryexp]

I really like this album, the lead single, KBIB and the title track are my favourites! I like the rest as well, fingers crossed she finds success with this.

[codyj100]

Here are my rankings as of now. There is not a single bad song on here. There just has to be a #12. WWDD is such a jam though. 


1. Keeping Bars In Business
2. LA
3. Things A Man Oughta Know
4. Neon Diamonds
5. Dirty Looks
6. Straight Up Sideways
7. Pipe
8. Rolling Stone
9. Sunday Best
10. Sayin' What I'm Thinkin'
11. Small Town, Girl
12. WWDD