Bullets In the Gun

This time out, Keith downplays overt politics in favor of tear-stained balladry, down-home celebrations and heartland romance. He approaches his songs with a filmmaker’s flair and an actor’s bravado — tracks like the trucker’s anthem “Drive It On Home,” the barroom lament “Somewhere Else” and the Western-themed title tune are classic narratives with a modern twist. Keith isn’t above dishing out tongue-in-cheek sexism (“Get Out of My Car”) or rhyming “convertible” with “flirtable” (in “Think About You All of the Time”). He gets all the details right in “Trailerhood,” a pungent slice of Southern life set to an easy-going groove. Amidst the twanging rockers and simmering mid-tempo tracks are tender young-love tunes (“Kissin’ In the Rain”) and yearning heartbreak numbers (“In a Couple of Days”). The album’s Deluxe Edition adds four live cuts, including surprising renditions of Roger Miller’s bopping “Chug-a-Lug” and Gordon Lightfoot’s brooding “Sundown.” Bullets In the Gun is prime Keith, swaggering, sly and tuneful to its core.