In our generation of singer-songwriters, it is not uncommon that we get a sappy couple of hits out of someone before they giveway to forever be played on soft-rock FM radio. A teenage girl might have pictures of guys with the name of Mraz, or Mayer on her wall, but you might wonder why Ryan Adams is not on those walls. He is a singer-songwriter right? And he has released more albums than those other guys combined right? But of course this isn't a guy that writes about girls body parts with sweet little melodies. Instead you usually get songs that range from your girl ***ing around with other guys, or songs with titles like "The Drugs Aren't Working". If you asked Ryan Adams why he is absent from those walls you're likely to get an answer such as "I don't ***ing care".
But Adams, 31, might have a similar response when asked about having to leave his twenties behind. With '29' Adams has put forth his third album of 2005, and has also left behind his backing band from the previous two releases "Cold Roses" and "Jacksonville Nights" , the Cardinals .
The best comparison 29 can have with earlier Ryan Adams work would be with the Love is Hell EP's. Most of the songs remind me of a hollow story being told through the eyes of someone who now sees the whole picture, and realizes that life is not a spectacle but rather what you see is what you get. Although the quiet testaments spoke by Adams are many on the album, it is a throwback to the singer-songwriter that we used to know in the 'Heartbreaker' days, accompaniement is provided by only a guitar or piano on most tracks. The songs do Adams justice as he has never struggled when it comes to producing good imagery in his song 'Strawberry Wine'- "Last night the street collapsed on itself/ In fact it broke right in two." This track being a highlight of the '29' but as the 50 minute album nears the end you get the impression that Ryan has been worn out by his over-productive year and is in need of some time to recuperate.
The work that Adams has done in 2005 is difficult to sift through, and it will take a while to digest the new songs, but perhaps he is due for a long vacation in 2006 (and 2007 for what it's worth). So that by the time we see another album released, we will have '29', and the other 2 albums as familiar to us as 'Gold', or 'Heartbreaker'.
This Message Edited On 04.03.06
