Danielle Bradbery calls her second album I Don't Believe We've Met for a reason: the country singer doesn't believe she's had a proper introduction on record. She released an eponymous debut in 2013, not long after she took home the crown on the fourth season of The Voice, and while it was a hit, it was certainly the product of the Music City machine -- straight-ahead mainstream country that didn't dare take risks. That's not the case with I Don't Believe We've Met. Bradbery makes sure her sophomore album fits into the fluid musical landscape of 2017, adding in hefty doses of electronics, shades of soul, and the occasional retro flashback (best heard on the lead single, "Sway"). All of these accouterments suit a set of songs that alternate between affirmations, inspirations, and confessions. Bradbery dispenses with any old-fashioned notions of country, preferring to sing about the messiness of modern life, which can include such inconveniences as sipping red wine on a white couch. Occasionally, her words can be a little too on the nose -- "I'm in love with your potential" seems like a dismissal -- but the lyrical ambition is nearly as admirable as the shifting, multidimensional pop on I Don't Believe We've Met.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo