Aaron Lacombe - Outside Dog (2020)

Lyrically, he's straightforward and earnest, with an ear for exceptional melodies. Opener "A Little Bit Broken" could sit among Brent Cobb's best as Patrick Lyons' mandolin and banjo licks easy, and the nostalgia-tipped "All Wrong" lingers between tight-rhymed classic country verses. Yet there's enough grit and regret to keep LaCombe's glass full, from the growling "Hell Ain't Ready for Me" to the hard strum of "I Just Miss Her Is All," while the title track turns up the electric guitar. The Detroit native's work ranks among the best of Red Dirt balladeers, with touches of Jason Boland and Randy Rogers, but also a keen sense of the new Nashville sound behind superstars like Chris Stapleton. Aaron LaCombe isn't widely known in Austin, but he'll soon rise to notice beyond it.