Brendan Walter took an unusual path to country music, so it isn’t surprising that this debut album from the Texas-born singer-songwriter takes a few unexpected turns, too. Once a semi-pro hockey player, Walter turned a lifelong love for music—he counts Mumford & Sons and Tyler Childers among his primary influences—into a career when he started posting cover songs online, quickly finding an audience with his emotive style of singing. Disappearing Days shows he’s as accomplished a songwriter as he is a singer, with 11 original tunes all co-written by Walter. The album opens with “Pipe Dream,” a rapid-fire ode to sticking to your guns that has the rollicking feel of a Mumford tune with the lo-fi grit of Zach Bryan. “No One’s Gonna Do It for You” is one of the record’s more straightforward contemporary country moments, with a driving beat and an emphasis on sticky melody. Walter digs into his rock influences (he’s also a fan of Van Halen and 2000s alt-rock) on the title track, while leaning into neotraditionalism on tunes like “Fightin’ Today.” He closes the album with “Pathetic,” a spare, vulnerable song about the power of enduring love.