Stepping Stone

Lari White's fourth studio album is a typical, turn-of-the- century Nashville moment, and so unfortunately it includes all the strengths and weaknesses one might expect: perfect but sterile playing; lots of story songs more interested in their clever ideas ("John Wayne Walking Away," for example) than in their real stories; and undeniable hooks (the title-track first single) wasted with shallow, feel-good lyrics. White has got some kinda pipes--enough to actually pull off a slinky, if unremarkable, country-pop declaration like "Take Me"--and is a technically superb singer, too. Perhaps too much so, since she oversings most everything, even a fine working- class slow-burn called "Tired," where she manages to work up enough energy to sing the word "gone" with a good half-dozen syllables. --David Cantwell