Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Ryan Adams, Easy Tiger, B-


Ryan Adams, back from a short hiatus (for him), has his usual band The Cardinals with him again on this disappointing alt-country album. Although most artist would have a high-water of song-writing if they recorded this album, the recently-sober Adams doesn't have the effortless magic on this album that marked career-best Heartbreaker (A), Gold (A-), and Love is Hell (B+). Lead-off single Goodnight Rose is a promising start, with follow-up It Takes Two (album best), about the maturing desire to be in a relationship, building on it. But after that, the album sort of stalls. The lyrics are depandably solid, and the vocals are fine, but there's nothing here that signals that we are in the presence of one of the great singer-songwriters of the last ten years. The sparkle of genius that I've taken for granted on an Adam's album, be it country, pop, or rock, never surfaces long enough to bring me to the transcendent place he can. The good news is, he's supposed to have another album out before the year is up. This one's a good album, but not special. B- (Listen here)

3 comments:

ch said...

I'm very excited about your review...as you know I love the Ryan Adams. Yeah he's supposed to have and EP album with the Cardinalas due out in November I think...and a box set of unreleased albums from his earlier solo career. So that's something to look foward to.

I definitly like Easy Tiger much better than 29...but it's not Heartbreaker or Gold. I still need to get Demolition to you because I think it's underrated and she be amongst his top cds.

ch said...

Oh I do think it's interesting that he's now sober, but gives a subtle drug reference on his cover photo with a 4:20 watch reading.

Oh I did also discover that he and alt. country cohort Jesse Malin have an underground punk band called Finger, though it's gotten pretty awful reviews.

You would like Malin's new cd with a duet from The Boss.

Anonymous said...

i was aware he had some punk stuff out there, but i've only heard some of the (seemingly endless) albums on his website. nice pick-up on the watch reading. i hadn't noticed.