Mirroring the vastness of the Texas landmark canyon after which the album is named, there is a lot of air in the arrangements on Shotgun Rider’s debut, “Palo Alto.” Spacy riffs and slow progressions dominate the songs, save for the pedal steel intro on “Steady As She Goes,” which is the closest to a traditional sound as there is in the 10 song collection. The  sum total is unabashedly contemporary, relying on radio friendly catchy melodies and hooks. Lyrically it suffers from what could be dubbed a bro country light tedium. Every song is about a girl, but there are no trucks or beaches and the alcohol references are limited to a heartbroken, lonely man drowning his sorrows as he pines away and tries to cope with longing, jealousy and loss. Lead singer Logan Sanford’s wide range  will have you convinced that Gary Allan is a guest vocalist from the first few bars of the poppy opener, ”Me And A Memory.” His voice is the best part of the album. It stands out as a signature element through the big, sweeping choruses and delivers the often depressing lyrics with conviction.

We get 54 minutes of breakup songs Sonically, the album shifts gears with Latin laced acoustic guitar on “Time Don’t Turn” But the fact that it’s not really trying to make any type of statement works to its advantage. For such a machismo moniker, the album is heavy on sensitivity and heartbreak. As much as bro country has taken a beating with its clichéd themes, this effort could have benefitted from a little muscle.