It has been for years The conversation surrounding Leon Bridges focused on his ability to channel bygone eras: the way his warm delivery recalled velvet singers from the '50s and '60s, the way he seemed at home in productions that felt like they would have been carried over from Motown's heyday. He became something of a poster boy for nostalgia, constantly admired as an old soul who seemed trapped in the present – a reminder of how much better things always seem in the rearview mirror.

And then, after a while, this narrative felt boring. Bridges was not a one-sided retro-revivalist; He is a 30-year-old with extensive musical references and inspirations. In left field adventures like his, he showed range and depth Texas Sun And Texas Moon EPs with psych-inspired band Khruangbin. He pushed deeper and deeper into R&B, gospel and rock, proving there was more to see.

His new album Leon could be the one that most establishes him as an artist. It's an insightful look at the places that shaped him as a musician outside of Texas, filled with images of city nights in Rio Grande and Lone Star. Perhaps due to the vintage pastiche, some of his earlier records – while beautiful – seemed aloof and slightly distant from Bridges himself. There's more emotional weight and personal intimacy lurking in the music here: From the start, Bridges recognizes male vulnerability with “When A Man Cries,” a sparse and unexpected opener that loses some of the glossy façade of his early work.

“Panther City” strikes a balance between Bridges' breezy gentleness, raw memories and fragments of growing up: references include hot days and old Nintendo 64s and a father's warning about a street full of crackheads and prostitutes. It's the kind of specificity that works even when the arrangements are quieter. Some of the album's more generic love songs – “NA” and “You Ain't The One”, for example – are less intriguing.

Bridges left the US for much of this album, ostensibly to find new inspiration elsewhere. Much of it was recorded at Mexico City's famed El Desierto studio, a change that seems to help Bridges on his introspective journey. This energy is at its strongest in “Peaceful Place,” where Bridges seems confident in this version of himself, asserting that he is exactly where he needs to be: “I found something that no one can take away from me.”