February 2004 ARTIST: Ron Sexsmith TITLE: Retreiver RECORD LABEL: Nettwerk REVIEW BY: Michael Delgado Over time, with artists like Nick Drake or Elliott Smith, we’ve been trained to expect solo singer/songwriter’s music to be a bit grim. They usually enjoy entertaining us with wrist splitting ballads about ripping hearts out of chests and crushing all hope with them, which makes Ron Sexsmith a pleasant turn of pace. At its gloomiest it isn’t more that sweetly melancholy. In fact, “Not About To Lose” is as hopeful a song you could ask for. With audible lyrics throughout and gentle melodies, Retriever is a good soundtrack for any wistful day of dreaming. GRADE: A User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.