In "Dance with the Dead," the Americana singer-songwriter Will Rainier opens a door into the afterlife, and it's as expressive as it's tender. The first single from his upcoming album, "Smoke 'em If You Got 'em," this track plays up Rainier's penchant for character-driven storytelling and ghost-town romanticism.
Rainier's palette is lush and textured, pedal steel, acoustic guitar, gentle drum machines, and even the soft xylophone provide an excellent weight to what could be a waltz for ghosts. But with a title and spectral imagery like "Dance with the Dead," the song moves along with an otherworldly sweetness that suggests the Sweetheart of the Rodeo-era Byrds, it's just coupled with Rainier's own Pacific Northwest storytelling sensibilities.
The heart of the music is reflected in both its performance and its lyrics. Rainier's voice floats through these bittersweet vignettes with the melodic clarity of a life lived and truth to power in songs that are enhanced by tender, breathy harmonies from his wife and collaborator, Jen Garrett. Their voices entwine like an old couple recalling a first dance, adding weight to lines.
It's a striking disconnect, menacing images laid over an almost gleeful backdrop, and it's no accident. The result is a music that asks its listeners to face the blues with a bit of grace, and hopefully, a little two-step.