Over the past few years, country artist Sam Hunt has gone from college quarterback to an overnight chart-topping artist. Exactly one year after his first studio album Montevallo was released, Hunt seems to have pulled off the impossible: he created an acoustic mix-tape that is even better than what his number one hits had to offer.

Hunt’s new mix-tape Between the Pines is a set of fifteen acoustic songs that include his biggest hits such as “Take Your Time” and “House Party,” as well as his renditions of “Cop Car” by Keith Urban and “Come Over” by Kenny Chesney.

The mix-tape not only twists his old hits into having a more authentic southern sound with natural vocals and simple melodies, but it also served as the blueprint in the creation of Montevallo according to tasteofcountry.com.

While the mix-tape has very few weaknesses, songs such as “House Party” and “Leave the Night On” sound marginally different than their studio versions, which is a slight drawback on the mix-tape as a whole as it does not create renditions that have solid acoustic roots. However, the rest of the songs showcase a more traditional kind of country music than his pop-influenced studio album, which is as welcomed as it is surprising.

The top hits off of Movtevallo are included on Between the Pines, but according to dailytexanonline.com, it is the songs that were never released on Montevallo that benefit the record the most.

Songs such as “Bottle It Up” and “Vandalizer” are centered around generic relationship lyrics, but Hunt’s inflection as well as soft melodies and slow rhythms make the song stand out among the cookie cutter relationship tracks.

“Saturday Night” has the opposite message as the hit “House Party,” but both songs have a similar beat and high speed tempo that makes them more cohesive in structure than the lyrics would make it seem.

Overall, Hunt’s return to the roots of country music on Between the Pines is a pleasant surprise after his previous pop-crossover hits, and the mix-tape has managed to showcase a different and more unique side to one of country music’s best rising stars.