Ryan Adams & The Cardinals – Cardinology

Ryan Adams has an impressive resume. Four solo albums since 2000, and with his band The Cardinals, another four added on to that total. Many shows played worldwide, multiple Grammy nominations, and respect and reverence from hundreds of thousands of fans. So, prior to listening to 'Cardinology', his latest album with The Cardinals, it can be assumed either of two things. A) This album will be the best example of alt-country that you can find, an exhibition of major talent from a majorly talented artist or B) It'll be very easy to listen to, slightly bland but sure as sugar guaranteed to sell records. And sadly Cardinology should have a big ol' B stamped on its cover.Closer to Bryan Adams than Bright Eyes, songs like 'Go Easy' and 'Natural Ghost' are solid and accessible, if easily ignored due to their apparent shallowness. This doesn't mean that they're bad, they just leave a slightly bland impression on one's musical palette. Obviously this approach to music offers up more potential fans, but if you're looking for genre pushing, you won't find it here. With Cardinology, Ryan Adams is clearly drawing a line between his music and the current wave of experimental americana/canadicana. He even goes so far the other way as to end up sounding like lite-rock chart-killers of past and present. With songs like 'Magick', Cardinology almost sounds like the britpop-referencing, vodafone owned Dandy Warhols, a singalong chorus hidden between sleazy drumming and retro guitar stabs. 'Cobwebs' has all the pomp and hair stroking self-adoration of a U2 or Coldplay track, and 'Crossed Out Name' could easily have been culled from a Snow Patrol album demo session. Luckily, Ryan Adams just about makes the songs their own. But in all honesty, it isn't far from sounding like pastiche instead of creation.The problem that lies with Cardinology is that all these aforementioned tracks are average, and nothing more. Ryan fares the best when playing the country superstar, rather than going for pop hooks. 'Born Into A Light' sounds like it was written 30 years ago, it oozes that classic, old school vibe that often leads to songs indeed becoming classics in the future. 'Evergreen' is a delicate, slow burning track with a snare that brushes gently against the wall of your skull, and a distant slide guitar line that completes the piece perfectly. It's the album highlight by far, not an obvious track, but of such high quality and so evocative of mood that it bears many repeat listens. 'Fix It' is the only track that pulls away from the country template and semi-succeeds, with an intro that wouldn't be out of place on an Eagles track giving way to a thick and luxurious chorus, thin vocal lines rolling across layers of reverb-heavy guitars. It still isn't amazing, but at least it catches the ear slightly.With Cardinology, Ryan Adams is probably going to earn himself some new chart radio loving fans, and get some more well deserved airplay. However, this album is a bit dangerous in the fact that it may slightly disappoint his die-hard fanbase, as it goes no way to showcasing his talent, prefering instead to plump for slight mediocrity over challenging his and The Cardinal's own conventions. Im sure in time they'll overlook that fact, but Cardinology is never going to be his magnum opus, just another notch on Ryan's musical bedpost. A few great country songs weighed down inescapebly with poppier tracks that seem slightly forced and unwelcome. If you want good Ryan Adams, listen to Love Is Hell, or Jacksonville City Nights. If you want a solid if generic pop-country album to play in the background at house parties, and then have 'Evergreen' kick in when everyones slightly pished and emotional, get Cardinology. That's probably it's best use, because it is in no way a fitting representation of the artist who created it. 68%Ryan Adams on MySpace