Nathaniel Rateliff 'In Memory Of Loss' Rounder

This album is largely built around the voice and guitar of Nathaniel Rateliff, there are other musicians involved but producer Brian Deck has used them sparingly to let Rateliff's dark, edgy voice be the central focus for his songs which as the title suggest deal with a sense of loss and loosing. The songs often take on a tough stance on like. A song like You Should Have Seen The Other Guy see someone who has reached a point where they have "no way to feel, no way to write" so a sense of desperation pervades the music. When the song requires as on Shroud the music can take on a harder edge and fuller sound. Some of the songs have the feel of a personal exorcism which can make for some powerful music. Rateliff's pain translates into uneasy but compelling listening for those who appreciate an artist who puts himself on the line in an open and bloody way. There are moments that remind me of the Frames and Rateliff may well appeal to those who like their music coming from a place that isn't all sweetness and light. In Memory Of Loss is an album that has a folk edge with electric overtones and Rateliff has a voice that cuts through and is powered by a strong sense of perdition but that is balanced by a way the music in itself has a powerful quality to pervade the consciousness with a positivity that the best blues music does