In a world of good singers, good musicians, and good songs, Trent Wagler is an exceptional singer, Jay Lapp is an exceptional musician/producer, and Adrienna Valentine is an exceptional album. It’s foundation is in bluegrass, but to my ears it’s entirely new. As soon as Trent Wagler’s voice jumps in on the first track “Darlin’ Cory”, you know that something different is happening. The vocal throughout is well done technically, but more importantly, Wagler knows not to make this album an exhibition of his vocal prowess; he performs the songs and tells the stories he needs to tell while doing it. Speaking of songs, Adrienna Valentine is comprised entirely of good ones, and even has a few great ones, such as the title track, which is a country waltz that’s devastatingly beautiful. It’s language is new, it’s story is old, and when Wagler delivers the lyric “The loneliest I’ve ever been/is when the news came down/Adrienna Valentine/will wear a wedding gown” he sets this album apart. I don’t know enough about bluegrass/old time music to say much more, but what I can say is that I don’t think this album would disappoint anyone, and I’d venture to guess that Trent and Jay will be forces to be reckoned with for a while. - Ben Cisneros