It took Gary Allan a long time to deliver the sequel to his 2013 hit Set You Free. Eight years, to be precise, a period that included a spell of non-LP singles that failed to set the Country charts on fire during the mid-2000s. None of these tunes wound up on Ruthless. Only the flinty, pulsing "Waste of a Whiskey Drink," a single teaser from 2020, is here and it sets the tone for the rest of Ruthless. The record is steeped in the rocking country of the 1990s, a style flexible enough to accommodate slightly fresh stylistic flourishes along with the weathering of Allan's voice. He sounds older here but not tired: he's a survivor carrying on, building upon what he's done in the past but wise enough to know that he needs to adapt otherwise he'd be left behind. Allan knows enough to not indulge in tacky trends, but he will layer in some electronic flair and nods to retro-soul, things that make Ruthless feel like an update on his style, not a record chasing fashion. He does stumble here, singing about sex with the grace of a cornball, but he rights himself when he sings Jesse Winchester's "Little Glass of Wine" with understated grace. There's more of the latter than the former here, which is why Ruthless winds up being worth the long wait: it took him some time, but Allan figured out a way forward. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine