After appearing with Lambert as a contestant on Nashville Star, Travis Howard co-wrote the tracks "I Can't Be Bothered", "Bring Me Down", and "Mama, I'm Alright".

"[1] Lambert gave songwriting co-credit for the title track to Alternative country artist, Steve Earle, after others noted the similarity to his 1996 single "I Feel Alright".

[3] John Metzger of Music Box stated that the single "Me and Charlie Talking" had an "infectious folk-pop" sound, while he considered "Greyhound Bound for Nowhere" to be "a somber retrospective.

Entertainment Weekly music critic, Alanna Nash gave Kerosene a B+ rating stating, "A Nashville Star finalist and only 20 when she recorded this spunky set of honky-tonk, country-rock, and Sheryl Crow-style ballads last year, Lambert's got Dixie Chicks-like potential; Her vocals evoke Natalie Maines, and she clearly knows how to write a killer tune.

Metzger proved his point by saying, "Without a doubt, her fame was derived from a carefully orchestrated marketing campaign, but standing in sharp contrast to almost all of her counterparts, the 21-year-old Texan actually has talent.

Erlewine drew the album's similarities to the production of the material by country artist Gretchen Wilson, a style which he called "stylized redneck raunch won."

He did find however that Lambert was unique in her own musical style, concluding by stating, "Against all odds, this a rarity in modern mainstream country: a piece of product that's friendly, tuneful, sharper, and more genuine than it initially seems.