“It all begins with a song”: so goes the unofficial creed of Nashville’s country music industry. In the case of Nashvillian Matthew West, those songs all began with stories. The Christian-based singer/songwriter invited fans to submit their stories of personal triumph, tragedy, struggle or contentment to his website. He then used those stories as a creative muse, secluding himself for a month in a cabin in Tennessee to write this collection of songs. “To Me,” with its lush guitar backing, is a song intended to support a lover or friend when they feel that the rest of the world is against them. “One Less” speaks of adoption, leaving one less broken heart in the world tonight, while Matthew reflects on the opposite scenario in “Two Houses,” which looks at divorce through the eyes of a child. Despite the pop-rock stylings featured here, the stories are as moving as any country music has to offer.