Miranda Lambert built Palomino as a bridge between her quiet, stripped-down recordings and the full sound she knows best. The album takes songs from her 2021 release The Marfa Tapes and dresses them up for a bigger stage, adding layers of steel guitar, fiddle, and drums. It is a record about leaving a marriage, moving through grief, and finding a new way to live — and it wants to do all that without losing the intimacy that made the earlier work feel so direct.
The result is Lambert’s most ambitious album to date, a 15-track statement that moves across country, rock, and pop textures without ever sounding lost. It is not perfect. Some tracks run together, and a few lean too hard on production tricks. But the core holds: strong writing, sharp performances, and a willingness to sit with difficult feelings instead of smoothing them over.
Actin’ Up Through Tourist
The record opens with “Actin’ Up,” a loose, bluesy track that sets the tone — Lambert is not here to apologize. “Scenes” follows with a darker, more reflective mood, and “In His Arms” is the first real standout, a slow-burning ballad that shows off her vocal control and the album’s emotional range. “Geraldene” is even better, a tribute to a friend that turns personal loss into something universal, and it remains one of the strongest cuts on the record.
“Tourist” closes this stretch with a wry, observational lyric about being an outsider in Nashville. It is a lighter note after the heaviness of “Geraldene,” but it earns its place by showing Lambert can shift gears without losing her voice.
Music City Queen Through Strange
“Music City Queen” is the centerpiece of the album’s first half, a swaggering anthem that name-checks Nashville bars and celebrates the city’s music scene. It is the kind of track that could fill a room, and it does — Lambert sounds fully committed to the character she is playing. “Strange” slows things down again, a meditation on loneliness and identity that lands somewhere between country and indie rock.
“Wandering Spirit” picks up the pace with a driving rhythm and a sense of restless movement. It is less memorable than the tracks around it, but it keeps the energy moving forward. “I’ll Be Lovin’ You” is a straightforward love song that does not overreach, and “That’s What Makes the Jukebox Play” closes the middle stretch with a nod to classic country storytelling — a man who leaves town and a woman who waits for him to return.
Waxahachie Through Carousel
“Country Money” is a sharp, witty commentary on the business side of the music industry, and it is one of the most fun tracks on the record. “If I Was a Cowboy” is slower, more introspective, and it works because Lambert commits to the metaphor — she is not literally a cowboy, but the comparison carries weight. “Waxahachie” is a hometown tribute that feels specific without being maudlin, and “Pursuit of Happiness” is a lighter, almost upbeat closer that signals the album’s ending.
“Carousel” ends the record with a dreamlike, cinematic quality — Lambert sings about a spinning ride and the cycle of life, and the production builds to a swelling climax. It is a fitting close, though it risks overstating the album’s themes.
What Works Best
The tracks that truly stand out are the ones that balance ambition with restraint. “In His Arms” and “Geraldene” succeed because they let the writing breathe — no excess, no forced production, just Lambert’s voice and a simple arrangement. “Music City Queen” works for the opposite reason — the production is bold, the performance is confident, and the song becomes a statement rather than a filler.
“Tourist,” “That’s What Makes the Jukebox Play,” and “Country Money” are the lesser tracks, not because they are bad, but because they sit in the middle of the album without quite matching the highs around them. They are competent, enjoyable, and occasionally clever, but they do not demand the listener’s attention the way the best tracks do.
Production Notes
The production across Palomino is varied enough to keep the album from feeling static. Steel guitar appears throughout, adding texture to ballads and drive to uptempo tracks. The fiddle work is subtle but present, and the drumming gives the rock-oriented tracks a solid pulse. The mixing favors clarity over loudness, which helps the quieter moments land with more impact.
Lambert’s vocal performance is consistent throughout, though some tracks ask more of her than others. On “In His Arms” and “Geraldene,” she reaches for high notes and sustains them with ease. On “Music City Queen,” she delivers a confident, theatrical performance that fits the song’s swagger. The lesser tracks do not require the same level of technical skill, but they still benefit from her presence.
Verdict
Palomino is Lambert’s most complete album in years, and it succeeds because it trusts her instincts across multiple genres. The songs are strong enough to carry the production choices, and the production choices are strong enough to support the songs. It is not a perfect record — the middle stretch drags in places, and a few tracks feel like they are repeating ideas already established elsewhere. But the highs are high enough, and the ambition is real enough, to make this a record worth returning to.
Lambert’s breadth is on full display.
That line captures the album’s central strength — Lambert is not hiding behind one sound or one mood. She is exploring, experimenting, and committing to each song she writes. The result is a portrait of a songwriter who has grown comfortable with her own range, and who is willing to let that range shape the final product.
| Track | Length |
|---|---|
| Actin’ Up | 3:25 |
| Scenes | 2:54 |
| In His Arms | 2:40 |
| Geraldene | 3:02 |
| Tourist | 3:35 |
| Music City Queen | 3:20 |
| Strange | 3:31 |
| Wandering Spirit | 3:36 |
| I’ll Be Lovin’ You | 3:09 |
| That’s What Makes the Jukebox Play | 4:10 |
| Country Money | 3:20 |
| If I Was a Cowboy | 3:15 |
| Waxahachie | 3:30 |
| Pursuit of Happiness | 2:49 |
| Carousel | 4:20 |
The album runs 50 minutes, and it rarely wastes a second of that time. The shorter tracks — “In His Arms” at 2:40, “Pursuit of Happiness” at 2:49 — pack a lot of meaning into small spaces. The longer tracks — “That’s What Makes the Jukebox Play” at 4:10, “Carousel” at 4:20 — give the themes room to breathe. The sequencing keeps the energy moving, with peaks in the middle of the album and a strong closer that ties everything together.
This is Lambert at her most confident, and it is a record that rewards patience. The lesser tracks are not failures — they are simply less essential than the ones that define the album. But they provide context for the stronger material, and they help make the album feel like a single journey rather than a collection of singles.
- Actin’ Up3:25
- Scenes2:54
- In His Arms2:40
- Geraldene3:02
- Tourist3:35
- Music City Queen3:20
- Strange3:31
- Wandering Spirit3:36
- I’ll Be Lovin’ You3:09
- That’s What Makes the Jukebox Play4:10
- Country Money3:20
- If I Was a Cowboy3:15
- Waxahachie3:30
- Pursuit of Happiness2:49
- Carousel4:20
