• Record Label: ATO
  • Release Date: Mar 5, 2013
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 19 out of 22
  2. Negative: 0 out of 22
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  1. Mar 21, 2013
    70
    The Stand-In is a gorgeous-sounding chronicle of such archetypal props, characters, and sounds, though the conceit does occasionally smother their narrator’s natural, vital wit.
  2. Mar 21, 2013
    70
    She has a tone that melds well with silky background vocals and just enough pedal steel.
  3. Magnet
    Mar 15, 2013
    80
    It's all gorgeous arrangements, soul-wrenching songwriting and heartbreaking stories, inhabiting a space that's both rock and country, indie and folk, without pandering to the lowest common denominator. [No. 96, p.59]
  4. Mar 13, 2013
    80
    It’s not so easily classifiable as “country,” but easily classifiable as really great pop music.
  5. Mar 12, 2013
    71
    It’s an easy listen with difficult layers, and if Rose quickly secured her status as a top young voice in country music a few years ago, she’s now cemented her position as an important one.
  6. 80
    With an album as consistently strong as The Stand-In at this early stage, she has an impressive career ahead.
  7. Mar 7, 2013
    80
    Most of the tracks could be singles, successfully marrying a pop sensibility to country twang without sacrificing the best aspects of either approach.
  8. Mar 7, 2013
    90
    Mostly, it's the wilting pedal steel, warm analog tubes, and lush heartbreak flourishes of "When I'm Gone" that distinguish Rose from the merchants of new country's jingles.
  9. Mar 5, 2013
    80
    Rose isn't trying to be all traditional country here, or even all straight pop either, but somehow she effortlessly melts the two together, and this set is definitely a winner, full of solid playing and, of course, Rose's easy and comfortingly wise vocals.
  10. 80
    The stories Rose tells are as fresh as wet ink.
  11. Though some of the good-girl-gone-bad shtick has been sacrificed on the altar of go-for-it jangly pop, she's still as good as it gets when she finally opens her pipes on "Dallas".
  12. 80
    This follow-up builds on the feisty freshness of Caitlin Rose's Own Side Now, her debut from 2010.
  13. Feb 22, 2013
    80
    Those who were endeared by Rose’s debut may be surprised, hopefully pleasantly, by the change in tone and attitude shown on The Stand-In. Nevertheless, it is a delightful record.
  14. Feb 22, 2013
    70
    The trick is that, while you know that she's stretching, she never sounds anything less than completely comfortable and in total control.
  15. Feb 21, 2013
    80
    A smidgeon of Rose's old spikiness is sacrificed, but it's easily a fair swap for songs bulging with terrific hooks and killer choruses, all of which belie some melancholy content.
  16. Feb 20, 2013
    80
    Mainly, though, if Caitlin Rose is the future of Nashville and American country music, then it would seem that its future is in safe, appealing and mellifluous hands.
  17. Feb 20, 2013
    90
    The Stand-In has everything that made its predecessor special--big voice, expertly crafted tunes, clever backings, a deft mix of stridency and restraint--but is definitely a step up.
  18. Feb 20, 2013
    70
    Despite this run of two poor(ish) songs, the album is largely excellent--a record bridging the gap between country music and popular music’s less derided genres perfectly.
  19. 85
    While it manifests in a way that’s less playful than on her debut, it’s replaced by a gravitas that befits a sophomore record.
User Score
7.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 5 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 5
  2. Negative: 0 out of 5
  1. May 2, 2013
    9
    Not just a great country album but a great pop album, Caitlin Rose's dulcet tones and phrasing are wonderful to listen to, you just can't helpNot just a great country album but a great pop album, Caitlin Rose's dulcet tones and phrasing are wonderful to listen to, you just can't help swaying along to them. A great follow up to her debut album, she deserves to be more well know than she is at the moment. Full Review »