Ron Sexsmith — Exit Strategy Of The Soul

Leave it to this marshmallow-mouthed troubadour, Ron Sexsmith to find the romantic side of American political turmoil. The 44-year-old songwriter shows he still hasn't outgrown that trademark boyish earnestness as he ponders through his tenth studio album, and why should he? Doe-eyed wonder has long been Sexsmith's meal ticket, and Exit Strategy Of The Soul wouldn't truly feel like one of his albums without his cotton croon and titles like "Poor Helpless Dreams" and "The Impossible World." Then again, no one ever accused Sexsmith of being difficult to pin down.

In fact, Exit Strategy suffers from familiarity. There's little to differentiate it from Time Being, Retriever, Whereabouts, Blue Boy or any other post-debut Sexsmith album. Not even producer Martin Terefe's decision to partly record the disc in Cuba with local musicians (and Feist, whose contribution is so buried in the mix that it might as well not have even happened) forces him out of his bittersweet, introspective little box. Exit Strategy Of The Soul is a prime candidate for the most forgettable Sexsmith album.

Get it from