Morgan Wallen, “One Thing at a Time.”

A 36-song album is an ambitious endeavor for any artist, but that is especially true for Morgan Wallen, who’s mostly been out of the spotlight since getting caught on video uttering a racist slur early in 2021 and publicly flaunting COVID protocols before that.

To Wallen’s credit, he hasn’t tried to bury what happened, donated some of the proceeds from 2021’s Dangerous (sales of which actually spiked after the incident) to a Black artists coalition and spent time in alcohol rehab. 

In that vein, One Thing at a Time are rife with vulnerability and honesty that run deep, as Wallen further entrenches himself in pop-country. With 36 songs (his last album had 30), the sound vacillates between that and traditional country. A few, like “You Proof,” “I Wrote the Book” and “Thinkin’ Bout Me” even expand into the hip-hop realm with catchy beats and flows. He tries out some pseudo-rapping on the former song.

But while his sound is largely similar to what he’s shown on his first two albums, his songwriting has certainly developed in the last couple of years.

Wallen takes a large portion of this album to tell stories much more personal than his prior heartbreak ballads. It doesn’t get too much more personal than taking the cover photo on the steps of his grandmother’s house.

He discusses struggling with sobriety on album opener “Born With A Beer In My Hand,” about growing up in a culture that normalizes drinking and partying. A good portion of Wallen’s older songs are about drinking to have a good time, so these songs are a departure as he takes a long look in the mirror.

Morgan Wallen brings this up again at the end of One Thing at a Time with “Dying,” about the vices that that claimed the lives of musicians like Hank Williams and Elvis, and how he assumed alcohol would do the same to him. The admission is actually refreshing coming from Wallen. Another personal track is “Thought You Should Know,” written like a letter to his mother, whose prayers for his safety and wellbeing must have been answered.

This triple album also contains an assortment of heartbreak songs, on which Wallen established himself early on in his career. He can still write catchy hooks about missing an ex, and on this album, he get pretty creative with the breakup metaphors.

Take “‘98 Braves,” one of the stronger tracks on the album. Here he bridges the feeling of surefire World Series champs losing in the playoffs to a surefire relationship that ends up doomed. “If love was a game and we were a team, we’d have been the ‘98 Braves,” he croons over a simple guitar riff. Then there’s “Tennessee Fan,” about falling for a girl who’s an Alabama football fan when Wallen steadfastly roots for the Tennessee Volunteers—a storied rivalry. With references to “Rocky Top,” Tennessee’s fight song, Alabama’s classic houndstooth-pattern fashions and Tuscaloosa. It’s not only a cute love song but a fun listen for college football fans.

Other well-written love and breakup songs include “Sunrise,” about the girl who keeps coming back, and “Me + All Your Reasons.”

The album also has some fun features from Wallen’s friends. The most prominent of these is Eric Church on “Man Made a Bar,” about how God created everything except for a way to get over heartbreak, leaving people to create “the bar.” HARDY accompanies Morgan Wallen on “In The Bible,” which is less about the Bible itself and more about being good disciples for “being country.” Another guest who provides a highlight is ERNEST on “Cowgirls,” a feel-good ode to the women of country music.

Thirty-six songs is a lot, but Wallen tells a cohesive story of self-growth across his third studio album. His ambition is rewarded with a strong offering, should listeners give him another chance.

Follow writer Piper Westrom at Twitter.com/plwestrom.