title: The Future (Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats album)
text: # The Future (Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats album)
  
  The Future is the third studio album by American rock band Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats. It was released on November 5, 2021 by Stax Records. The album was produced by Brad Cook and R.M.B. (consisting of Rateliff, Patrick Meese, and James Barone) with additional production by Elijah Thompson.
  
  ## Background
  
  The band recorded The Future in Rateliff's Broken Creek Studio outside of Denver and wrote songs that reflected on times during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a press release, Rateliff said of the recording process: "When I was writing the record, we were in the middle of a pandemic and our future looked pretty bleak. I just continue to try to write from a place of hope. Then my own neurosis, and maybe being a Libra gets in the way, and I can’t make up my mind. There is this constant back-and-forth battle in me personally and I am sure that comes out in my writing."
  
  ## Singles
  
  The album's lead single "Survivor" was released on August 18, 2021. The song peaked at number 46 on the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart.
  
  ### Promotional singles
  
  The album's first promotional single "Love Don't" was released on September 26, 2021 followed by "What If I" on October 15, 2021.
  
  ## Critical reception
  
  Professional ratings :
  
  | Aggregate scores ||
  | - | - |
  | Source | Rating |
  | AnyDecentMusic? | 7.4/10 |
  | Metacritic | 79/100 |
  | Review scores ||
  | Source | Rating |
  | AllMusic | |
  | American Songwriter | |
  | The Line of Best Fit | 8/10 |
  | Rolling Stone | |
  
  Upon its release, The Future received positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 based on reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 79 based on 8 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
  
  ## Track listing
  
  All tracks are written by Nathaniel Rateliff, except track 2 which was co-written by Rateliff with Sam Cohen and Patrick Meese.
  
  ## Charts
  
  ### Weekly charts
  
  Chart performance for The Future :
  
  | Chart (2021) | Peak position |
  | - | - |
  | Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) | 116 |
  | Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) | 87 |
  | UK Albums (OCC) | 33 |
  | US Billboard 200 | 165 |
  