The Bluff

The Bluff is signature Sarah Dougher, with deeply bare, honest, and piercing ruminations on the struggle to balance intellect and emotion and finding hope and healing amid love's losses. Backed by a gritty, almost '60s psychedelic rock soundtrack, listeners will be hard-pressed to not feel the album rumbling their insides. Dougher's second full-length album -- The Walls Ablaze was her first -- boils over and brews steadily, much like the human experience. Highlights include "Must Believe," a delicious throwback to '60s rock (think Jefferson Airplane), the toasty folk-inspired "My Kingdom," and Dougher's worthy remake of the 1962 blues piano song "It's Raining." Probably the most affecting cut on The Bluff, however, is its delicate and lulling title track. Open-ended in its meaning, the song will leave listeners in a state of reflection long after the last note has resonated. The Bluff is anything but. This album wraps around listeners like a warm and snug comforter, with enough scratchy patches to gently remind listeners of life's harsher realities.