PATTERNS (DELUXE)

the take

Maybe I've been outside of the loop, but I don't remember Kelsea Ballerini's music being a bit more "country pop-ish" than usual. I've heard of Kelsea Ballerini back in like 2018 via her album "Unapologetically". Since then, I've haven't been in tune with her discography, but I noticed she released an album within the last year that had me curious to see how it is. As I said at the beginning, "PATTERNS" feels a bit overproduced with it fitting the basic country pop mold that's popular and prevalent in country music today. That's probably why listening to this was a bit inconsistent for me, despite how amazing of both a vocalist and songwriter Kelsea is. Sure, one can say the material on here is a notch below other country singers' songs like Megan Moroney or Carrie Underwood and the like. I'd be lying to you if I said I didn't enjoy this album. Hell, "PATTERNS" is actually better than I expected, given how critical I am of country music as a whole as of late and the fact I haven't listened to a Kelsea Ballerini album in about seven years. "Beg for Your Love" is one of those songs that instantly spoke to my soul from the first second I listened to it, it's that incredible. Other solid tracks include the incredible three track run of "First Rodeo", "Nothing Really Matters", and "How Much Do You Love Me". Kelsea's vulnerability throughout this project helped me enjoy this album on a spiritual level at times. While it feels bloated enough as is (and adding the extra tracks further proves it), "PATTERNS" is one of those albums I'm surprised I didn't listen to sooner. It's not the best album I've heard, but it's a reminder of why I came across Ms. Ballerini's music in the first place and still check for every so often. Good album nonetheless.