#reviewoftheweek / Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats - Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats

Coming from a folk background, you'd never expect a musician to stray too far from his roots. However, Nathaniel Rateliff has always had a layer of grit coating all of his previous releases, making for a much deeper style of folk. That being said, at first listen you can hear the folksiness throughout the entire self titled album by him and his band the Night Sweats. It's a songwriter's album, with emphasis on lyrics. Two tracks on the album surfaced on the Internet in other forms years ago, "Look It Here" and "Trying So Hard Not To Know." That was right around the time Rateliff formed this band and started performing shows. "S.O.B." is the song that has put Nathaniel and his counterparts on the musical map. While he's had success as a folk singer, this song showcased his old school soul and blues rock chops, and has become one of the party anthems of the summer. Other standouts on the album are "Howling At Nothing" and "I Need Never Get Old." It's a different kid of fun, from a different kind of band, that is sure to have him getting awards buzz by year's end. It wouldn't be a surprise if this album is up for "Album Of The Year" awards.