Tearing at the seams

You're driving down a highway. The cruise control is set at a comfortable level; maybe about seven miles over the speed limit, which is just enough to keep you up with traffic but not enough to get you a ticket. The road is straight as an arrow, the traffic is relatively light. You've been so focused on the trip itself that you start to have tunnel focus, and before you know it, you've completely zoned out. 

Then you have that instant wake up moment, realizing that you're actually driving a four wheeled, one ton death machine.

Everyone has those wakeup moments. The one above is just a minor example, and hopefully one that doesn't hurt anyone. There comes a time, though, when we all stop for a moment because we've just noticed something that either we're doing to ourselves isn't good, or something that's happening around us isn't as it should be. 

I had one in 2009 when I decided to finally get medical help to quit smoking. Grad school was tough but it wasn't being made any easier with that crutch. It worked like a champ, and I'm glad I did it. Part of me wishes I'd done it sooner, but I'm also wise enough now to know that I wouldn't have been ready at any other age.

Something akin to this happened to Nathaniel Rateliff between the two records he's released with his band, The Night Sweats. Their first self-titled release from 2015 was a roadhouse plus Blues Brothers meets Sam Cooke R&B horn section driving record. It was born of where Rateliff was in his life at the time; on the road and rocking the hard life as it came. The perfect examples of this are songs like the massive hit "S.O.B." and "I Need Never Grow Old." 

Fast forward three years and Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats are back with their sophomore release Tearing At The Seams. Rateliff has aged more than these three years; various interviews have noted that he's now telling different stories about his battles with alcoholism this album than last. There's been a wakeup moment somewhere and that's apparent on Tearing - it's less the rollicking, boozy feeling roadhouse blues record, and more the slightly slower, more relaxed introspection that comes from living through everything and finally discovering what's on the other side.

The album is wonderfully produced. It's out on Stax Records, which should instantly clue you in to what you'll hear on this perfectly mid-rangey album. Think of it as if their two records were made at the same time and this one got to age for a few years like wine. It's still got its good time tracks like the ones I mentioned above, but it's also pulled up a chair to sit down and take a rest. That might be the biggest thing I have about this record: it's as if they're just a little tired. Rateliff's voice at times seems a little exhausted and less supple. There are also a few tracks where the horn section is either absent or very downplayed, and honestly the horn section is the best thing about this band. When they're cooking, the album is cooking. When they're not, it's the point in the concert when you go wait in line for another drink.

Recommended tracks: "Hey Mama," "I'll Be Damned," "You Worry Me," "Shoe Boot," "Be There"