The songs on this Anti debut sound cultivated from the fertile, treacherous Mississippi mud that surrounds him. Whitmore's ability to balance contrasts – suffering and humor, truth and fancy, the literary and the earthy – places him in a tradition that has drawn young dissidents to folk music since before Dylan's time. With two albums behind him featuring his stunning voice – a powerful instrument that can recall Leadbelly and Otis Redding within the same song – and traditional banjo and guitar. Whitmore has made a name for himself in both punk and roots communities.