Renegade

Album review

Since debuting in 2010 with the slow and soulful Pauper's Field, the Louisiana native and son of Muscle Shoals session player James LeBlanc has presented himself as a bluesy, country-folk troubadour with a honeyed voice and knack for crafting world-weary ballads that ache with the hard-earned wisdom of somebody much older. 2016's lush Cautionary Tale added a backing band, expanding LeBlanc's high lonesome tales of hardship and heartache into something a little more cinematic. 2019's Renegade adopts an even more widescreen approach, delivering a taut ten-track set that leans heavy into muscular pop and soaring heartland rock. Commencing with the aptly named title cut, which echoes the Tom Petty song of the same name, "Renegade" frames LeBlanc's reedy tenor against a driving beat and the reverb-laden roar of spectral, chiming guitars. Produced by Nashville hitmaker Dave Cobb, there's a clearly defined sheen applied to Renegade, but LeBlanc has always straddled the line between Americana outlaw and country-pop crooner. Songs like "Born Again" and "Lone Wolf," both of which harbor considerable mainstream appeal, are also remarkably solid examples of the kind of expertly crafted, modern classic rock that has brought success to contemporaries like War on Drugs and Strand of Oaks. Even when dialing back on the BPMs, which he does on the languid "Sand and Stone" and the stirring, wonderfully orchestrated closer "Honor Among Thieves," there's a stately yet steely confidence at play that just wasn't there on previous outings. In widening the lens, LeBlanc has taken his Springsteen-esque narratives out of the woodshed and onto the open road, and has delivered his best offering to date.
© James Christopher Monger /TiVo