 Ryan Adams Nothing I've heard about Ryan Adams leads me to believe he's anything but a charlatan, lucky to have parlayed his phoniness into mass appeal. The two Love is Hell EPs seem to be his 700th and 701st releases in the past two years, so he's now beginning to convey the illusion of importance simply by the sheer volume of his discography. Strangely, the music does not seem to support such prolific output. Usually, when someone releases a large amount of music in a short span of time, it is because they command some kind of rabid fan-following … they're hitting a unique chord that resonates with people who have been yearning to hear that chord all their lives. Cocteau Twins spring to mind, or Belle & Sebastian. Ryan Adams's music, though, is startlingly generic. There's not much to hold onto … it sounds like Muzak® for Urban Outfitters. Anguished vocals, strummy acoustic guitars, crashing electric guitars, druggy lyrical content, and, at most, four chords. We've heard it all before. His voice is bland, at best conjuring memories of 90s-era James (that wasn't a compliment) and at worst sinking into the background like a slew of album tracks by Five For Fighting (that really wasn't a compliment). Love is Hell was apparently rejected by the label, so Adams has split it into two EPs and put it out with no real push. That makes it more appealing to me than any of his "major" albums would be, but it doesn't change the fact that the music barely exists. I'd heard interesting things about this stuff, like it was stylistically diverse, and at times evoked the Smiths. I don't hear any of that. It's all the same ponderous, downbeat lameness, track after track. And there is no Smiths. Some Springsteen, maybe. Not in a good way. I suppose the low-key cover of "Wonderwall" stands out as the best cut, but even that one sinks into the background like so much David Gray. Yet I can't say this is bad … I can say, however, that I am vaguely embarrassed to listen to it, like someone is going to come in and ask whether I'm watching "Dawson's Creek." The one thing that does stand out is Adams's insistence on gratuitous drug and alcohol references, almost as a plea for credibiity. I don't buy it. Yet, I did buy it. I wonder how many artist's careers are supported by people buying their records simply to cultivate an informed opinion, rather than actually enjoying the music. Guess charlatanism pays off, after all.
Review by Thomas Long-and-Strong |