For many Shania Twain is up there as one of the current Queens of Country. While her recordings have been less frequent since her nineties chart dominating era, she has shown with both 2017's Now and 2022's Not Just A Girl (The Highlights) that she is a diverse, relevant and striking performer who understands country, while never being afraid to not keep herself neatly contained within the box. As she returns with her sixth studio album, she defiantly proclaims herself Queen of Me.

Queen of Me is exactly what you'd expect from the title. This is a reflective collection that is full of honesty and determination. Having teased the release with two epic radio dominating singles, Giddy Up! and Waking Up Dreaming , it is clear that global re-domination is set to be the bi-product of these internal explorations.

While 2017's Now made attempts at aligning her sound with the upcoming artists of the moment, Queen of Me sees Shania staying true to who she has always been. As both singles have demonstrated, Shania has taken the core strength of her two most commercially successful albums - Come On Over and Up! - but not relied so heavily on the sound that defined them that it feels like she is simply re-treading old ground.

With 12 songs making up the album, the balance between balladry and power pop country anthems is met perfectly. While there is no doubt that the title track, Queen Of Me, is destined to join the ranks of Shania's finest single releases, albeit only being topped by the explosively addictive Pretty Liar. However, Number One is the track destined for club remixes that will ensure it lives forever.

The inclusion of the lush Not Just A Girl is a wise decision. The slightly cheesy Best Friend is begging to be reworked as a duet with Dolly Parton. However it is the truly gorgeous Inhale/Exhale Air that steals the ballad crown.

Queen of Me is the perfect balance of old school Shania and a little something something new. A strong early contender for album of the year.

With an album that oozes a feeling of comfort within her own skin, Shania is back and better than ever.