Midland - Stages [Clear Red]

Stages finds Midland coming full circle, a 2026 album that brings the fiddle back to the front and leans hard into classic country. This pressing comes on clear red vinyl.

The Dripping Springs, Texas trio of Mark Wystrach, Jess Carson and Cameron Duddy arrived about a decade ago with a love of throwback country that set them apart on mainstream radio. Their fifth studio album, released on Blue Highway Records, ties a thread back to those beginnings, drawing on more outside songwriters than ever before while keeping their own three-part harmonies at the centre.

Opener and lead single "Marlboro Man" comes from the pens of Dean Dillon, Tim Nichols and Josh Thompson, and it fits the band like a broken-in pair of boots. "Shooting Memories With Tequila" followed it as a single. "Up In Texas" brings in Clint Black, a longtime hero of theirs, and the stripped-back "Vaquero" pares things down to acoustic guitars and close harmonies, in the spirit of Marty Robbins' cowboy songs.

The production stays warm and uncluttered, letting the fiddle breathe across all ten songs.

For anyone who misses the sound of a 90s dancehall jukebox, this one hits the spot, and it might be the most purely country record Midland have made.