I simply canNOT stop listening to this album! I am a Ryan Adams fan from back in his Whiskeytown days, and have followed the arc of his career over the subsequent two decades of veering into rock, back into alt country, solo stuff back to a group (with the Cardinals), confessional folk, rock again (and again) and I simply run out of superlatives when it comes to this guy. This much is readily evident after even the most cursory sampling of his work: Ryan Adams is never boring. His self-titled latest album is a fine addition to an admirable (and massive) body of recorded work. His first release since 2011s fine Ashes and Fire, this new work is rendered all the more remarkable by the news that he had recorded a completely different album with famed producer Glyn Johns, only to decide to scrap it completely and record these eleven news songs instead. But all that aside the *music* hes produced here is just something else. I listened to it for the first time earlier this week, and I suspect Im going to remember that first time the way I remember the first time I listened to Whos Next, or Born to Run or Moving Pictures. Seriously, from the first listen its had the impact of a Wrecking Ball on me (if you listen to it youll get the reference) - devastating and gorgeous and poignant and absolutely unforgettable. The funny thing about this album by a guy who has always worn his musical influences on his sleeve is that you can ask ten different people whose work this album reminds them of and youll get ten different lists of obvious influences. And theyre all both wrong and right at the same time. Some folks hear echoes of Neil Young here (me too), especially in some of the plaintive choruses and the fuzzier solos, Tom Petty (ditto, and unsurprising in light of the participation of Pettys long-time keyboardist Benmont Tench) and the Smiths (nope, dont hear it. Adams has a far better voice than Morissey and writes vastly superior lyrics). For what its worth I hear Springsteen in some of the points being made about the difficulty of navigating relationships and I hear Dan Fogelberg in some of the chiming guitars, and I hear Bob Dylan in some of the more poignant lyrics and I hear the Band in one of the rave-ups on this album. And thats all nice, but dont be fooled. This is Ryan Adams record, and he is more than the sum of his influences. Like any visionary he incorporates and in so doing transcends his heroes. And that makes for both great art and compelling listening.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Sep 2014 00:44:30 +0000
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