Jared McCloud - Tramp Like Me (self-released)

It’s a familiar tale. A young man starts his music career letting off sonic steam via an array of rock and metal bands but after a while feels that such a format doesn’t allow for the nuance or subtly that he is looking for to say the things that he wants to say, doesn’t give him the tools to express himself truly. A solo path is, as is often the way, the answer, and so, for a decade and a half, Jared McCloud has been writing songs that not only allow for more sonic expression but also talk about the most intimate aspects of his life.

“Tramp Like Me,” taken from his forthcoming album Vacancy has all the same hallmarks as many of the classic songwriters – the pace and poise of a laid back Springsteen song, the depth and raw honesty of Tom Waits dark and deep thoughts and the restless spirit and bitter-sweet romance of Ryan Adams, – which is a lot to fit in a song, especially one that employs space and atmosphere as well as McCloud does here.

And, like all good videos, the visuals help tell the story, the imagery of a man throughout his life trying to make amends and explain his thoughts and actions to those he loves via the written word. It reminds us that, after all, we are who we are, we can’t change our nature, we are all subject to the trials and tribulations of the human conditions. We can’t always control our actions, but we can own them and, hopefully, be accepted for who we are, good and bad, right and wrong.

A great song, an artful and expressive video in its own right and an artist to watch out for.